Of  THE    "^ 

'II7BIISITT1 


'^-7^2^^ 


THE 


SEALS    OPENED 


OR,  THH 


APOCALYPSE   EXPLAINED. 


BY 


ENOCH  POND,   D.D., 

PKOFESSOK  IN  THE  THEOLOGICAL  bEMINABY,  BANGOE. 


Of  TBTB 


^ 


[TJIIVBESIT 


PORTLAND: 
HOYT,    POGG,    AND    BEEED. 

MDCCCLXXI. 


■^^^^^1 


^-p/ 

t^ 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1871,  "by 

HOTT,  FOGG,  AND  BREED, 

ia  the  ofQce  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress  at  "Washingtoiu 


^   Of  THB 

EE'PlCE. 


I 


HAVE  long  wished  to  come  to  a  clear  and  right 
understanding  of  the  Apocalypse.  It  has  been 
a  subject  of  thought  and  inquiry  with  me  almost 
from  childhood.  Years  ago,  I  flattered  myself  that 
I  might  interpret  the  first  five  chapters  and  the  last 
three ;  but  all  between  the  sixth  chapter  and  the 
tAventieth  seemed  dark  and  mysterious.  In  the 
midst  of  unexplained  visions  and  symbols  I  was 
confounded,  and  could  see  nothing  clearly ;  and  it 
seemed  strange  to  me,  that  a  book  so  sublime  and 
beautiful,  so  well  attested  as  a  revelation  from  God, 
and  in  regard  to  which  a  special  blessing  has  been 
pronounced  upon  him  who  reads  and  understands 
it,  should  have  been  left  in  so  much  darkness. 

When  the  Jesuit  and  German  method  of  inter- 
preting the  book  had  been  published  in  America, 
and  especially  after  it  had  been  endorsed  substan- 
tially by  Professor  Moses  Stuart,  I  gave  the  subject 
a  new  and  earnest  attention.  But  for  reasons  which 
will  appear  in  the  following  pages,  I  could  not 
adopt  the  theory  proposed.  If  seemed  to  me  to 
be  based  upon  a  false  assumption  as  to  the  date  of 


iv  PREFACE. 

the  Apocalypse,  and  instead  of  shedding  hght  upon 
the  previous  darkness,  it  the  rather  increased  it. 

One  thing  which  deterred  me,  and  I  presume 
has  deterred  others,  from  a  careful  study  of  the 
Apocalypse,  was  a  supposed  diversity  of  opinion 
among  standard  English  and  American  commenta- 
tors in  regard  to  it.  We  were  told  that  our  best 
expositors  differed  endlessly  respecting  it,  that  no 
two  of  them  were  agreed,  and  that  it  was  impos- 
sible to  obtain  satisfaction,  or  to  find  the  truth. 
But,  on  examination,  I  am  satisfied  that  this  diver- 
sity has  been  much  exaggerated.  Erratic  minds, 
to  be  sure,  have  wandered  variously ;  but  among 
better  men,  if  there  has  not  been  an  entire^  there 
has  yet  been  a  substantial  agreement.  The  two 
writers  who,  beyond  others,  have  served  to  direct 
public  opinion  on  the  subject  in  America  and  in 
England,  are  Mr  Lowman^  and  Bishop  Newton. 
Following  them,  on  substantially  the  same  plan  of 
interpretation,  are  Doddrige,  Scott,  Andrew  Fuller, 
and  (better  than  all),  the  lamented  Albert  Barnes. 
Though  not  adopting  the  interpretations  of  the 
latter  on  all  points,  I  feel  bound  to  say,  that  I 
have  been  more  assisted  by  the  study  of  liis  Notes 
than  by  any  other  author. 

The  view  which  he  takes,  and  which  I  have  been 

'  More  than  fifty  years  ago,  Dr  Emmons  said  to  mc  :  '  Lowman's 
"Paraphrase  and  Notes  on  tlie  Revelation"  is  the  best  book  on  the 
subject  that  has  ever  been  written.' 


PREFACE  V 

led  to  take,  is  not  new.  Avoiding  the  theories  of 
Rationalists  and  Roman  Catholics  on  the  one  hand, 
and  of  the  Adventists  on  the  other,  the  plan  of  in- 
terpretation which  we  have  pursued  is  the  same 
which  has  been  held  by  the  great  body  of  evange- 
lical ministers  and  Christians  in  America  and  in 
England  for  the  last  hundred  years.  And,  in  my 
opinion,  the  time  has  come,  when  this  view  should 
be  more  openly  and  formally  adopted  in  our  Churches 
than  it  ever  has  been.  Why  should  not  the  Apo- 
calypse be  studied  in  our  Sabbath  schools  and  Bible 
classes,  as  well  as  the  other  books  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment ?  It  seems  to  me  that  public  opinion  has  be- 
come sufficiently  settled  in  regard  to  the  explana- 
tion of  it,  to  admit  of  its  being  made  a  formal  study; 
and  helps  for  the  understanding  of  it  can  be  easily^ 
furnished. 

A  single  consideration  is  sufficient  to  show  that 
the  symbols  of  the  Apocalypse  are  not  of  so  difficult 
interpretation  as  some  have  supposed,  and  that  the 
right  interpretation  has  been  adopted.  The  apostle 
John,  under  the  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  pub- 
lished, some  eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  a  prophetic 
delineation  of  the  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman  em- 
pire. In  the  last  century,  Edward  Gibbon  published 
a  learned  history  of  its  Decline  and  Fall,  and  surely  no 
one  will  impute  to  Gibbon  a  design  of  recording  the 
fulfilment  of  the  Apocalypse.     And  yet  Mr  Barnes 


vi  PREFACE. 

tells  Tis :  *  To  mj  surprise,  I  found  in  Gibbon  a  re- 
corded series  of  events,  wliicli  seemed  to  me  to 
correspond,  to  a  great  extent,  witli  the  series  of 
symbols  found  in  the  Apocalypse.'  ^  In  other  places, 
]\Ir  Barnes  speaks  of  Gibbon's  history  as  liis  prin- 
cipal help  in  explaining  the  Seals  and  the  Trumpets. 
To  this  statement  I  desire  to  add  my  own  attesta- 
tion; I  have  carefully  read  Mr  Gibbon's  history, 
having  the  symbols  of  the  Apocalypse  particularly 
in  view,  and  I  can  truly  say,  that  the  many  obvious 
coincidences  surprised  me. 

It  has  been  objected  to  the  Apocalypse — more 
especially  to  the  prophetic  parts  of  it — that  it  is 
without  plan  or  method.  But  this  is  not  true.  It 
has  a  method  which — excepting  here  and  there  an 
episode — and  its  triumphant  songs — is  strictly 
pursued. 

The  prophetical  part  of  the  Apocalypse — that 
relating  to  '  the  things  which  shall  be  hereafter' — 
is  divided  into  two  parts. 

The  first  train  of  predictions  terminates  at  the 
Millennium.  The  Seven  Seals,  including  the  Trum- 
pets, run  on  to  this  stage ;  for  when  the  seventh  angel 
sounded,  there  were  great  voices  in  heaven,  saying, 
'  The  kingdoms  of  this  world  have  become  the  king- 
doms of  our  Lord,  and  of  His  Christ,  and  He  shall 
reign  for  ever  and  ever.'     But,  as  the  latter  part  of 

^  See  Albert  Bai-nes'  Preface. 


PREFACE.  vii 

this  long  period  is  but  dimly  indicated  by  the  Seals 
and  Trumpets,  it  is  further  exhibited  in  successive 
symbols  and  visions,  in  order  to  make  the  view  more 
complete.  These  commence — perhaps  not  all  at 
once — with  the  rise  of  the  Papal  power,  and  extend 
onward  to  the  Millennium  through  the  1260  years. 
The  first  two  of  these  symbols  are  the  treading  of 
the  holy  city,  the  Church,  under  foot  by  the  Gen- 
tiles, for  forty  and  two  months,  and  the  prophesy- 
ing of  the  two  witnesses  in  sackcloth  for  the  same 
period  (Rev.  xi.  2,  3).  The  third  is  that  of  the 
woman  fleeing  into  the  wilderness,  to  be  nourished 
and  protected  there  for  the  same  period  (Rev. 
xii.)  And  the  fourth  is  that  of  the  two  beasts  which 
were  to  continue  their  ravages  for  the  same  time 
(Rev.  xiii.  5).  These  all  spread  over  the  same 
period,  and  terminate  in  the  great  conflict  imme- 
diately preceding  the  Millennium. 

And,  as  though  these  had  not  depicted  events 
with  sufiicient  fulness  and  clearness,  they  are  sup- 
plemented by  several  other  symbols  and  visions. 
There  is  the  vision  of  the  great  harlot  riding  on  the 
Roman  beast,  and  of  the  seven  angels  pouring  out 
their  vials — the  seven  last  plagues ;  of  the  terrific 
fall  of  the  mystical  Babylon;  and  of  the  closing 
victory  oi  the  Son  of  God  (Rev.  xvi.— xix.) 

The  second  train  of  apocalyptic  predictions 
includes  the  Millennium;  the  defection  following  it; 


viii  PREFACE. 

the  overtlirow  of  Gog  and  Magog,  together  with 
all  God's  enemies ;  the  resurrection  and  general 
judgment ;  the  final  state  of  the  wicked  in  the  lake 
of  fire ;  and  the  endless  glories  of  the  Church  in 
heaven. 

It  will  be  seen  that  here  is  plan  and  method. 
The  more  complicated  part  of  it  is  the  1260  years 
preceding  the  Millennium,  where  several  visions 
are  recorded,  not  following  each  other  chronolo- 
gically, but  spreading  over  the  same  period,  for 
the  purpose  of  a  more  full  delineation.  But  all  this 
will  be  more  fully  explained  as  we  pass  along. 

It  has  been  no  part  of  my  object  to  write  a 
critical  commentary  on  the  Apocalypse,  or  a  learned, 
elaborate  exposition  of  it.  I  have  designed  rather 
to  enlarge  and  open  the  book,  to  show  briefly  the 
import  and  application  of  its  symbols ;  to  point  out 
its  fulfilment  in  the  past  history  of  the  Church  and 
of  her  enemies;  and,  as  an  encouragement  to  effort, 
to  present  her  glorious  future.  My  design,  in  short, 
has  been  so  to  present  this  last  book  of  the  Bible, 
that  it  may  be  read  and  understood  by  Cliristians 
generally,  feeling  sure  that  they  will  find  it,  like  all 
other  Scripture,  to  be  *  profitable  for  doctrine,  for 
reproof,  for  correction,  for  instruction  in  righteous- 
ness.' 

Theological  Seminary,  Bangor,  Me., 
May  6,  1871. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    I. 

Page 

The  Apocalypse;  "When  ^yritten,  and  by  Whom?      .  .  1 

CHAPTER    II. 

Review  of  Professor  Staart  on  the  Apocalypse  :  with  Occa- 
sional References  to  the  Commentary  of  Professor 
Cowles,  .......  17 

CHAPTER    III. 

The  First  Three  Chapters  Considered.     Revelation,  chaps. 

i.,  ii.,  iii.,  .  .....  30 

CHAPTER    IV. 

Introduction  to  the  Prophetical  Portion.    Revelation,  chaps. 

iv.,  v.,    .  .  .  .  .  .  .37 

CHAPTER    V. 

The  Opening  of  the  Seals.     Revelation,  chap,  vi.,    .  .  52 

CHAPTER   VI. 

I'he  First  Four  Trumpets.     Revelation,  chaps,  vii.,  viii.,      .  78 


X  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER   YII. 

Page 

The  Fifth  and  Sixth  Trumpets.    Revelation,  chap,  ix.,  95 

CHAPTER    VIII. 

Christ  appears  as  a  Mighty  Angel :  the  End  not  Yet.   Revela- 
tion, chap.  X.,     .  ...  .  .  .        109 

CHAPTER   IX. 

The  Testimony  of  the  AVitnesses — the  Seventh  Tmmpet. 

Revelation,  chap,  xi.,     .  .  .  .  .115 

CHAPTER   X. 

The  Mystical  Woman  and  her  Seed.    Revelation,  chap,  xii.,        125 

CHAPTER    XI. 

Rise  and  Description  of  the  Papal  Beasts.   Revelation,  chap. 

^1x1  •  ••  •  •  •  •  •  m  xi}  X. 

CHAPTER    XII. 

Daniel's  Vision  of  the  Four  Beasts.    Daniel  chap,  vii.,  »        142 

CHAPTER    XIII. 

Sundry  Visions— Preparation  for  the  Seven  Last  Plagues. 

Revelation,  chaps,  xiv.,  xv.,      .  .  .  .150 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

The  Pouring  out  of  the  Seven  Vials.   Revelation,  chap,  xvi.,        158 


CONTENTS.  XL 

CHAPTER    XV. 

Page 

God's  Judgment  upon  the  Great  Whore.    Revelation,  chap. 

xvii.,        .......        172 

CHAPTER    XYI. 

The  Fall  of  the  Mystical  Babylon.  Great  Lamentation  on 
Earth,  and  great  Rejoicing  in  Heaven,  on  account  of 
it.     Revelation,  chap,  xviii.,      .  .  .  ,179 

CHAPTER   XYII. 

Rejoicings  in  Heaven  over  the  Fall  of  Babylon.    Revelation, 

chap,  xix.,  .  .  .  .  .  ,        183 

CHAPTER   XVIII. 

The  Millennium.  The  general  Resurrection  and  Judgment ; 
and  the  final  Destruction  of  the  Wicked.  Revelation, 
chap.  XX.,  ......        192 

CHAPTER   XIX. 

Glorious  Destination  of  the  Righteous — Symbolical  Repre- 
sentation of  the  Church  in  Heaven  —  Conclusion. 
Revelation,  chaps,  xxi.,  xxii.,    ....        202 

CHAPTER   XX. 

The  Songs  of  the  Apocalypse,  .  .  •  .212 

CHAPTER   XXI. 

The  Lessons  of  the  Apocalypse,         .  .  , .  •        222 

APPENDIX. 

Ezekiel's  Vision,        .  .  .       *    .  .  .        233 


THE 

APOCALYPSE    EXPLAINED. 


CHAPTER    I. 

THE    APOCALYPSE  ;    WHEN    WRITTEN,    AND    BY    WHOM. 

lyrO  one  of  our  sacred  books  has  excited  so  many 
-L  1  questions,  and  led  to  such  diverse  interpreta- 
tions, as  the  Apocalypse.  It  is  not  my  purpose  to 
notice  all  of  these,  or  any  considerable  part  of 
them,  but  I  shall  content  myself  with  showing 
what  I  conceive  to  be  its  true  history,  design,  and 
interpretation. 

I  begin  with  inquiring  as  to  the  autlwr  of  the 
book,  and  the  date  of  it. 

The  Apocalypse  is  repeatedly  said  to  have  been 
written  by  John.  It  commences  with  a  declaration 
to  this  effect ;  *  And  He  sent  and  signified  it,  by  His 
angel,  to  His  servant  Jolin^  Also :  '  John  to  the 
seven  Churches  of  Asia.' — 'I  Jolm^  saw  the  Holy 
City,  the  new  Jerusalem,  coming  down  from  God 
out  of  heaven.' 

A 


2  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

But  what  John  was  this?  Was  it  John  the 
beloved  disciple  and  apostle,  or  some  other  man? 
Papias  speaks  of  a  presbyter  of  the  name  of  John, 
who  lived  in  Asia  Minor  in  the  latter  part  of  the 
first  century ;  and  by  some  critics,  the  Apocalypse 
has  been  ascribed  to  him.  But  of  this  John  we 
know  little  or  nothing  except  the  name ;  and  the 
supposition  that  he  wrote  the  Apocalypse  is  a  mere 
conjecture,  got  up  two  hundred  years  after  his 
death,  by  those  who  wished  to  destroy  the  canoni- 
cal authority  of  the  book.  We  dismiss  the  sugges- 
tion, therefore,  as  not  worthy  of  serious  considera- 
tion, and  adopt  heartily  the  commonly  received 
opinion,  that  the  author  of  this  wonderful  book  was 
no  other  than  the  apostle  John. 

In  proof  of  this,  we  cite,  first,  the  circumstances  of 
the  writer,  as  detailed  by  himself.  He  says  (chap.  i.  9), 
'  I  John,  who  also  am  your  brother,  and  companion 
in  tribulation,  and  in  the  kingdom  and  patience  of 
Jesus  Christ,  was  in  the  isle  that  is  called  Patmos, 
for  the  word  of  God,  and  for  the  testimony  of  Jesus 
Christ.'  In  other  words,  the  writer,  whoever  he 
may  have  been,  was,  at  the  time,  suffering  perse- 
cution for  the  truth's  sake,  and  was  in  banishment 
on  the  isle  of  Patmos.  But,  according  to  the 
united  testimony  of  the  early  fathers,  the  apostle 
John,  in  a  time  of  severe  persecution,  was  banished 
to  the  isle  of  Patmos.     I  hardly  need  quote  their 


WHEN  WRITTEN,  AND  BY  WHOM.  3 

language  on  tliis  point.  Clement  of  Alexandria, 
Tertullian,  Origen,  Victoriniis,  Eusebius,  Epiplianius, 
Sulpicius  Severns,  Jerome,  and  a  great  many 
others,^  tell  us  (to  use  the  very  words  of  Origen), 
'that  a  Roman  emperor  banished  the  apostle  John 
into  the  isle  of  Patmos,  for  the  testimony  which  he 
bore  to  the  word  of  truth.'  This  shows  that  it  was 
John  the  apostle,  and  not  another,  who  wrote  the 
book  under  consideration. 

And  to  this  fact,  we  have  the  direct  testimony 
of  many  of  the  early  fathers.  Justin  Martyr,  who 
flourished  from  forty  to  sixty  years  after  the  death 
of  John,  says,  '  A  certain  man,  John  by  name,  who 
was  one  of  the  apostles  of  Christ,  prophesied,'  etc."^ 
Melito,  bishop  of  Sardis,  a  contemporary  of  Justin, 
wrote  a  book  concerning  '  the  Apocalypse  of  John.'^ 
Apollonius,  a  distinguished  writer  of  Asia  Minor, 
in  a  book  against  the  Montanists,  appeals,  in  like 
manner,  to  '  the  Apocalypse  of  John.'  ^  Irenseus, 
in  his  work  against  Heresies  (book  4,  chapter  xx.), 
speaks  repeatedly  of  John — the  same  who  wrote  the 
gospel — as  the  author  of  the  Apocalypse.  Clement 
of  Alexandria,  speaking  of  the  righteous  man,  says, 
'  He  shall  sit  among  the  twenty-four  thrones,  judg- 
ing the  people,  as  John  saith  in  the  Apocalypse.'  ^ 

*  See  Larclner's  Credibility,  vol.  v.  pp.  414-416. 
^  Dialogue  with  Trypho,  chap.  80,  81. 

3  In  Euseb.  Ecc.  Hist.  iv.  24  and  28,  v.  18. 

*  Strom,  iv.  4. 


4  THE  APOCAL  YPSE  EXPLA  IN  ED  : 

Tertullian,  the  first  of  the  Latin  fathers,  speaks 
often  of  the  Apocalypse  as  the  work  of  the  apostle 
John.  In  his  book  against  Marcion,  referring  to 
Kev.  i.  16,  he  says,  that  'the  apostle  John,  in  the 
Apocalypse,  describes  the  sword  proceeding  from 
the  mouth  of  God.' 

Hippolytus,  bishop  of  Ostia,  testifies  abundantly 
to  the  Johannean  origin  of  the  Apocalypse.  In  his 
book,  *  De  Antichrist o,'  section  9,  he  says,  '  Blessed 
John,  apostle  and  disciple  of  the  Lord,  tell  me  what 
thou  didst  see  and  hear  respecting  Babylon?'  and 
then  he  quotes  Revelation,  chapters  xvii.  and  xviii., 
as  the  testimony  of  the  apostle. 

Origen,  the  most  learned  of  the  early  fathers, 
who  was  born  only  seventy-eight  years  after  the 
death  of  John,  speaks  continually  of  this  apostle  as 
the  author  of  the  Apocalypse.  I  hardly  need  quote 
passages.  In  his  commentary  on  Matthew,  he 
says,  '  John  has  left  us  one  gospel.  He  also  wrote 
the  Apocalypse.'  Again,  he  quotes  what  *John, 
the  son  of  Zebedee,  says  in  the  Apocalypse.' 

But  if  the  Apocalypse  was  so  generally  regarded, 
in  the  first  ages  of  the  Church,  as  the  work  of  John, 
and  of  canonical  authority,  how  came  it  to  be,  after 
a  time,  disputed?  What  could  have  led  some  of 
the  fathers  of  the  third  and  fourth  centuries,  as 
Dionysius,  and  Nepos  of  Alexandria,  and  Caius  of 
Rome,  and  even  Eusebius,  the  historian,  to  enter- 


WHEN  WRITTEN,  AND  BY  WHOM. 


r 


tain  doubts  respecting  it  ?    To  this  I  answer  :  These 
doubts  were  entertained,  not  at  all  on  historical  >? 

grounds,   but    for   reasons   purely   doctrinal.      The       ""^ 
historical  proof   of  the  apostolical   and  canonical  ^ 

authority  of  the  Apocalypse  was  ample ;  but  the 
\^  millenarians  laid  hold  of  a  passage  in  the  20th 
chapter — that  which  speaks  of  the  binding  of  Satan 
for  a  thousand  years — and  urged  it  in  proof  of  their 
peculiar  sentiments.  And  the  fathers  above  men- 
tioned thought  that,  perhaps,  the  best  way  to  be 
rid  of  the  troublesome  passage  was  to  discard  the 
book  which  contained  it.  Thus  Luther  reasoned, 
for  a  time,  in  regard  to  the  Epistle  of  James,  be- 
cause he  did  not  know  how  to  interpret  it ;  he  was, 
at  the  first,  inclined  to  reject  it. 

After  the  revolution  under  Constantine,  the 
^  Millenarianism  of  the  primitive  times  fell  into 
disrepute.  And  from  that  period,  the  authority 
of  the  Apocalypse  was  fully  restored,  and,  with 
few  exceptions,  has  been  maintained  to  our  own 
times. 

During  the  last  century,  the  critics  of  Germany 
have  assailed  the  Apocalypse,  denying,  in  the  most 
positive  terms,  that  it  can  have  been  written  by 
the  apostle  John.  Thus  De  Wette  says:  *  Nothing 
stands  so  firm  as  that  the  apostle  John — if  he  be 
the  writer  of  the  Gospel,  and  the  first  Epistle — did 
not  write  the  Apocalypse  ;'  and  Ewald  says  :  '  That 


6  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

the  Apocalypse  was  not  written  by  the  same  hand 
which  wrote  the  Gospel  and  the  Epistle,  is  clear  as 
the  light  of  the  sun.'  The  principal  objection  to 
the  Johannean  origin  of  the  Apocalypse  grows  out 
of  its  style — its  peculiar  words  and  phrases ;  an  argu- 
ment by  which  this  class  of  critics  have  shown 
themselves  able  to  prove  or  disprove  almost  any- 
thing ;  by  which  they  have  proved  that  Moses  did 
not  write  the  Pentateuch,  nor  Daniel  his  prophecies, 
nor  the  Evangelists  the  Gospels  which  bear  their 
names ;  by  which  they  have  proved  that  Homer 
did  not  write  his  poems,  nor  Plato  his  dialogues, 
nor  Cicero  but  a  part  of  his  orations. 

The  style  of  the  Apocalypse  is  not  more  different 
from  that  of  the  other  writings  of  John,  than  is  the 
subject,  the  method,  the  object  of  the  composition. 
How  is  it  possible,  in  writing  such  a  book  as  that 
before  us, — made  up,  in  great  part,  of  visions,  types, 
and  symbolic  representations, — that  the  style  should 
not  differ  from  that  of  a  plain  historic  naiTative,  or 
a  famihar  loving  epistle  ?  Any  competent  critic 
would  decide  before  hand  that  there  must  be 
peculiar  expressions,  and  a  wide  diversity  of 
style. 

And  yet  there  are  found  many  charactenstic  re- 
semblances. Professor  Stuart  has  drawn  out  a  long 
list  of  these,  filling  several  pages  of  his  learned 
commentary,  showing  that  many  of  the  favourite 


WHEN  WRITTEN  AND  BY  WHOM.  7 

expressions  of  John,  occnmng  in  his  Gospels  and 
Epistles,  are  also  found  in  the  Apocalypse.-^ 

But  if  John  wrote  the  Apocalypse,  ivlien  did  he 
luiite  it  ?     And  what  is  the  proper  date  of  the  book  ? 

That  John  saw  his  visions  while  a  persecuted 
exile  on  the  isle  of  Patmos,  he  has  himself  declared. 
He  either  wrote  them  while  on  the  island,  or  shortly 
after  his  return. 

But  when  was  John  banished  to  the  isle  of  Patmos? 
Under  which  of  the  emperors  did  his  exile  occur  ? 

On  this  question,  modern  interpreters  are  divided, 
some  supposing  that  he  was  exiled  in  the  persecu- 
tion under  Nero  about  the  year  QQ ;  while  others 
insist  that  he  was  banished  by  Domitianas  late  as 
the  year  96.  If  the  former  of  these  suppositions 
is  correct,  then  John  was  banished  and  saw  his 
visions  previous  to  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  by 
Titus.  And  those  who  adopt  this  view  insist  that 
the  greater  part  of  the  Revelation,  all  between  the 
4th  and  20th  chapters,  relates  to  the  approaching 
destruction  of  Jerusalem,  and  the  death  of  Nero ; 
or,  at  farthest,  to  the  fall  of  the  Pagan  Eoman 
empire. 

This  scheme  of  interpretation  was  first  invented 
by  the  Jesuits,^  wdth  a  view  to  rescue  Popery  from 

*  See  Stuart's  Comment,  on  the  Apocalypse,  vol.  i.  p.  406. 
^  By  Alcazar,   a  Spanish  Jesuit,  who  flourished  near  the  com- 
mencement of  the  seventeenth  century. 


8  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

the  blasting  visions  and  denunciations  of  the  Apo- 
calypse. It  was  earnestly  adopted  by  the  Ration- 
alists of  Germany.  It  has  since  found  favour  with 
a  class  of  interpreters  in  England  and  this  country, 
among  whom  we  are  sorry  to  include  the  late  Pro- 
fessor Stuart  of  Andover,  and  Professor  Cowles  of 
Oberlin.  I  shall  go  into  a  brief  examination  of  this 
scheme  of  interpretation  in  my  next  chapter.  At 
present  we  have  merely  to  do  with  the  date  of  the 
Apocalypse,  or  the  time  when  it  was  written. 

It  has  been  thought  to  favour  the  early  date 
of  the  Apocalypse,  and  the  interpretation  growing 
out  of  it,  that  the  things  therein  predicted  were  to 
be  fulfilled  quickly  :  '  The  revelation  of  Jesus  Christ, 
which  God  gave  unto  Him,  to  show  unto  His  ser- 
vants things  that  must  shortly  come  to  pass'  (Rev. 
i.  1.)  But  it  is  admitted  by  all,  that,  among  the 
things  predicted  in  this  book,  are,  the  resurrection, 
the  general  judgment,  and  the  final  state  of  the 
righteous  and  the  wicked,  and  of  these  things  it  is 
said  repeatedly  in  the  closing  chapter,  that  they 
'  must  shortly  be  done : ' — *  The  time  is  at  hand.' — '  Be- 
hold I  come  quickly,  and  my  reward  is  with  me,  to 
give  every  man  according  as  his  work  shall  be' 
(Rev.  xxii.  6,  10,  12). 

How,  then,  is  this  phraseology  to  be  under- 
stood ?  How  was  it  understood  by  the  author  of 
the  book  and  by  the  Spirit  who  indited  it  ?     Not, 


WHEN  WRITTEN,  AND  BY  WHOM.  9 

surely,  according  to  our  estimation  of  time,  but 
rather  as  God  estimates  it,  to  whom  '  one  day 
is  as  a  thousand  years,  and  a  thousand  years  as 
one  day/ 

It  is  assumed  by  some  writers,  that  the  coming 
of  Christ,  spoken  of  in  Rev.  i.  7,  is  His  coming  to 
destroy  Jerusalem,  because  of  the  intimation,  that 
some  who  were  actually  concerned  in  His  crucifixion 
would  be  present :  '  Every  eye  shall  see  Him,  and 
the2/  also  which  pierced  Him.^  But,  in  the  sense  in 
which  the  murderous  Jews  pierced  the  Saviour,  we 
all  have  pierced  Him  by  our  sins.  He  was  literally 
pierced  by  only  one  man,  and  he  a  Roman  soldier 
(John  xix.  34).  In  the  same  sentence  with  that 
above  quoted,  it  is  said,  that  '  all  the  kindreds  of  the 
earth  shall  wail  because  of  Him'  (Rev.  i.  7).  Were 
*all  the  kindreds  of  the  earth'  present,  with  their 
wailings  and  lamentations,  when  Jerusalem  was 
destroyed?  or,  is  this  scene  reserved  to  the  final 
coming  of  Christ  to  judge  the  world  ? 

It  is  further  urged,  that  the  Apocalypse  must 
have  been  written  as  early  as  the  time  of  Nero, 
since  only  seven  Churches  are  mentioned  in  it, 
which,  probably,  was  the  whole  number  at  that 
time  existing  in  Asia  Minor.  But  it  would  be  easy 
to  show  that  there  Avere  many  Churches  in  Asia 
Minor  before  the  deaths  of  Peter  and  Paul.  In 
addition  to  those  addressed  in  the  Apocalypse,  there 


10  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

were  Churclies  certainly  in  Iconium,  in  Lystra,  in 
Derbe,  in  the  Pisidian  Antioch,  in  Hierapolis,  in 
Pontus,  in  Cappadocia,  in  Bythinia,  in  Cilicia,  in 
Galatia,  in  Colosse,  and  probably  in  many  other 
places.  Why  messages  were  sent  to  only  seven  of 
these  Churches,  I  pretend  not  to  say.  Perhaps 
these  were  the  only  ones  with  which  John  was 
particularly  acquainted;  or  the  number,  seven, 
may  have  been  taken,  because  it  was  a  favourite 
perfect  number  among  the  Jews. 

On  the  whole,  we  find  nothing,  in  the  Apoca- 
lypse or  out  of  it,  which  should  lead  us  to  think 
that  it  was  written  during  the  persecution  under 
Nero,  and  that  the  most  of  it  relates  to  his  death 
and  to  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  or  to  the  fall 
of  Pagan  Rome.  We  adopt  the  other  supposition ; 
that  it  was  written  during  the  persecution  under 
Domitian,  near  the  close  of  the  first  century,  and 
that  it  takes  a  much  wider  range  of  signification 
than  that  referred  to. 

It  does  not  appear  that  John  could  have  become 
domiciliated  among  the  Churches  of  Asia  Elinor 
initil  near  the  close  of  the  Neronian  persecution. 
These  Churches  had  been  chiefly  planted  by  Paul, 
and  were  under  his  particular  care  and  inspection. 
He  often  visited  them  while  he  had  his  liberty ;  and 
after  his  confinement,  he  frequently  wrote  letters 
to,  and  kept  up  a  constant   communication  with 


WHEN  WRITTEN  AND  BY  WHOM.  11 

them ;  yet,  in  none  of  bis  letters,  even  to  the 
last,  do  we  find  any  mention  of  John,  or  any  refer- 
ence to  him  as  residing  in  that  quarter.  Accord- 
ingly, Professor  Schaff  says  :  '  It  was  probably  the 
martyrdom  of  the  apostle  to  the  Gentiles,  and  the 
attendant  dangers  and  distractions,  that  led  John 
to  take  this  important  step,  and  build  his  structure 
on  the  foundation  laid  by  Paul.'^  Neander  also 
says :  '  After  the  martyrdom  of  Paul,  it  is  probable 
that  John  was  called  upon  by  the  better  part  of 
the  Churches  to  transfer  the  seat  of  his  activity  to 
this  quarter.'  ^ 

Nero  put  an  end  to  his  life,  and  the  persecution 
ceased  in  the  year  68.  Some  two  or  three  years 
after  the  death  of  Paul,  John  would  hardly  have 
removed  to  Asia  Minor  during  the  violence  of  this 
persecution  j  and  he  must  have  resided  there  some 
considerable  time  before  he  had  become  intimately 
acquainted  with  the  Churches,  and  acquired  such 
an  influence  and  authority,  as  would  justify  him 
in  directing  such  messages  to  them  as  we  find  in 
the  Revelation.  The  probability  therefore  is,  that 
John  was  not  in  Asia  Minor,  or,  if  there,  was  not  in 
circumstances  to  present  them  with  such  a  book  as 
that  before  us,  until  long  after  Nero  was  dead,  and 
his  bitter  persecution  of  the  Christians  had  ceased. 

'  ITist.  of  Apostolic  Churches,  p.  399. 

^  Planting  and  training  the  Apostolic  Churches,  p.  219. 


12  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

A  variety  of  e^ddence,  drawn  from  the  Apocalypse 
itself,  goes  to  assure  us  that  it  could  not  have  been 
written  until  near  the  close  of  the  first  century. 

It  was  not  till  this  time  that  the  first  day  of  the 
week  began  to  be  called  '  the  Lord's  day,'  yet  it  was 
on  'the  Lord's  day'  that  John  was  in  the  Spirit,  and 
saAV  the  opening  vision  of  the  Apocalypse  (Rev.  i.  10). 

It  was  not  till  near  the  close  of  the  first  century 
that  there  was  a  presiding  elder,  an  angel,  in  each 
of  the  Churches.  •  Previous  to  this  the  elders  of  a 
Church  were  always  classed  together,  but  each  of 
the  seven  Churches  of  Asia  seems  to  have  had  a 
presiding  officer,  or  elder,  when  the  Apocalypse 
was  written. 

The  Gnostic  errors  had  begun  to  show  them- 
selves in  the  time  of  Paul,  but  they  had  not  been 
matured  and  organised  under  heresiarchs  before 
the  close  of  the  first  century ;  yet  we  hear  of  the 
Nicolaitanes,  a  sect  of  Gnostics,  in  two  of  the 
messages  to  the  Churches  of  Asia  (Rev.  ii.  6,  15). 
Near  the  close  of  the  first  century,  and  not 
earlier,  the  Gnostic  leaders  commenced  the  work 
of  mutilating  the  sacred  books  of  the  Christians. 
It  was  this  practice,  probably,  which  led  to  the 
closing  denunciations  of  the  Apocalypse :  *  If  any 
man  shall  add  unto  these  things,  God  shall  add 
unto  him  the  plagues  that  are  written  in  this  book : 
and  if  any  man  shall  take  away  from  the  words  of 


WHEN  WRITTEN,  AND  BY  WHOM.  13 

the  book  of  this  prophecy,  God  shall  take  away 
his  part  out  of  the  book  of  life,  and  out  of  the  holy 
city,  and  from  the  things  that  are  written  in  this 
book.'  There  had  been  no  occasion  for  language 
such  as  this  until  near  the  close  of  the  first  century. 

It  is  obvious  that  the  seven  Churches  of  Asia 
were  in  a  very  different  condition,  when  the  Apo- 
calypse was  written,  from  what  they  were  in  the 
time  of  Nero  and  of  Paul.  The  Church  at  Ephesus 
had  '  lost  its  first  love.'  The  Church  at  Smyrna 
had  those  in  its  communion  who  belonged  to  '  the 
synagogue  of  Satan.'  The  Church  at  Pergamos 
harboured  not  only  the  Nicolaitanes,  but  those  who 
held  '  the  doctrine  of  Balaam,  who  taught  Balak  to 
cast  a  stumbling-block  before  the  children  of  Israel.' 
The  Church  at  Thyatira  suffered  '  the  woman 
Jezebel '  to  teach,  to  seduce  its  members  to  commit 
fornication,  and  to  eat  things  sacrificed  to  idols. 
The  Church  at  Sardis  had  only  '  a  few  names '  left 
which  had  not  defiled  their  garments ;  while  the 
members  of  the  Church  at  Laodicea  had  become  so 
lukewarm  and  offensive  to  Christ,  that  He  was 
ready  to  '  spue  them  out  of  His  mouth.' 

In  short,  these  Churches  had  all  of  them  de- 
clined— sadly  declined,  from  what  they  were  when 
Paul  wrote  his  Epistles  to  some  of  them ;  and  time 
must  he  allowed — a  considerable  time,  in  which  to 
account  for  their  defections.      If  we  suppose  the 


14  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

Apocalypse  written  during  the  persecution  under 
Nero, — only  a  few  years  subsequent  to  the  writing  of 
Paul's  Epistles, — the  requisite  time  is  not  furnished. 
But  if  the  book  was  written  thirty  years  later,  in 
the  persecution  under  Domitian,  the  declension  can 
be  accounted  for,  at  least  on  the  score  of  time. 

The  testimony  of  the  Fathers  on  the  point  before 
us  is  just  what,  in  view  of  the  facts  above  detailed, 
we  might  expect.  With  few  exceptions,  it  is  unani- 
mous in  ascribing  the  exile  of  John,  and  the  writing 
of  the  Apocalypse,  to  the  time  of  Domitian.  We 
commence  with  Irenseus,  bishop  of  Lyons,  in  Gaul. 
He  had  been  a  disciple  of  Polycarp,  who  was  a  dis- 
ciple of  the  apostle  John.  He  must  have  been 
familiarly  acquainted  with  the  circumstances  of 
John's  banishment,  with  the  time  of  it,  and  the 
person  by  whom  it  had  been  decreed.  He  could 
not  have  been  mistaken  on  these  points,  nor  is  there 
any  mistake  or  ambiguity  in  his  testimony.  '  The 
Apocalypse,'  he  tells  us,  was  seen  not  long  ago^  but 
almost  in  our  own  generation^  near  the  end  of  the  reign 
of  Domitian!^  This  testimony  has  never  been  set 
aside,  and  never  can  be.  It  is  enough  of  itself, 
considering  the  circumstances,  to  decide  the  ques- 
tion before  us. 

But  this  testimony  does  not  stand  alone.  It  is 
concurred  in  by  nearly  all  the  more  distinguished 

^  Contra  Haeres,  v.  20. 


WHEN  WRITTEN,  AND  BY  WHOM.  15 

Fathers.  Victorinus  says  repeatedly,  that  John 
was  banished  by  Domitian,  and  m  his  time  saw  the 
Revelation.  Hippolytus  speaks  of  John  as  having 
been  exiled  to  Patmos  under  Domitian,  where  he 
saw  the  Apocalypse.^  Eusebius,  speaking  of  the 
persecution,  says  :  '  In  this  persecution,  John  the 
apostle  and  evangelist,  being  still  alive,  was  ba- 
nished into  the  isle  of  Patmos.'^  Jerome,  in  his 
book  of  illustrious  men,  says :  *  Domitian,  in  the 
fourteenth  year  of  his  reign,  raised  the  next  perse- 
cution after  Nero,  when  John  was  banished  to  the 
isle  of  Patmos,  where  he  wrote  the  Revelation.' 
In  another  work,  he  says :  '  John  was  a  prophet. 
He  saw  the  Revelation  in  the  isle  of  Patmos,  where 
he  was  banished  by  Domitian.'^  Sulpicius  Severus 
says,  that  *  John,  the  apostle  and  evangelist,  was 
banished  by  Domitian  to  the  isle  of  Patmos,  where 
he  had  visions,  and  where  he  wrote  the  Revela- 
tion.' * 

It  would  be  needless  to  multiply  quotations  like 
these,  and  pursue  them  to  a  later  period.  It  has 
been  said  that  these  testimonies  are  of  little  value, 
since  they  are  all  based  one  upon  another,  and 
ultimately  upon  that  of  Irenaeus.  But  this  is  not 
true ;  at  least,  no  one  has  any  right  or  reason  to 
affirm  that  it  is  true.     They  go  to  show  what  was 

»  Works,  p.  90.  3  ^Yorks,  vol.  vi.  p.  446. 

^  Ecc.  Hist.  Lib.  3,  cap.  18.  "*  \yorks,  vol.  iv.  chap.  120. 


16  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

the  settled  conviction  of  the  Cliurch  on  the  point 
before  ns,  from  the  second  century  to  the  sixth, — 
the  very  time  when  the  question  could  best  be 
settled ;  and,  in  the  judgment  then  formed,  and  so 
unanimously  expressed,  it  becomes  us  of  the  nine- 
teenth century  to  acquiesce.  It  cannot  be  reversed 
but  upon  vastly  weightier  reasons  than  any  that 
have  yet  been  urged. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  question  here  discussed 
has  a  vital  bearing  on  the  interpretation  of  the 
Apocalypse.  If  this  book  was  written  near  the 
close  of  the  first  century,  almost  thirty  years  after 
the  death  of  Nero  and  the  fall  of  Jerusalem,  then  it 
is  vain  to  look  for  its  fulfilment  in  either  of  these 
events.  There  is  not  the  slightest  allusion  to  either 
of  them,  from  one  end  of  the  book  to  the  other. 

But  as  many  persons  at  this  day, — following 
Professor  Stuart  and  the  Germans, — are  inclined 
to  adopt  their  scheme  of  interpretation,  it  may  be 
well  to  examine  it  more  particularly. 


REVIEWS  EXAMINED.  17 


CHAPTER  11. 

REVIEW  OF  PROFESSOR   STUART   ON   THE  APOCALYPSE  : 

WITH  OCCASIONAL  REFERENCES  TO  THE  COMMENTARY  OF 
PROFESSOR  COWLES. 

AMONG  my  ministerial  friends  who  have  passed 
away,  no  one  stood  higher  than  the  late  Pro- 
fessor Moses  Stuart  of  Andover.  I  loved  and 
honoured  him  while  he  lived,  and  venerate  his 
memory  now  that  he  is  gone.  He  was  the  father  of 
biblical  learning  in  this  country.  He  did  more  to 
promote  a  knowledge  of  the  original  Scriptures,  espe- 
cially those  of  the  Old  Testament,  than  any  other 
individual.  On  most  of  his  exegetical  writings  I 
set  a  high  value,  and  it  is  with  pain  that  I  feel  con- 
strained to  differ  from  him  in  regard  to  any  of  them. 
But  his  learned,  laboured,  exhaustive  work  on  the 
Apocalypse  I  consider  the  least  valuable  of  his  Com- 
mentaries. The  plan  of  this  Commentary,  borrowed 
mostly  from  the  Germans,  is  founded  on  a  false 
assumption ;  and  this  fact  vitiates,  confuses,  and 
half  spoils  the  whole. 

Professor  Stuart  assumes  that  the  Apocalypse 
w^as  written   about   the  year  68,  just  before   the 


18  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

death  of  Nero,  and  two  years  previous  to  the  de- 
struction of  Jerusalem  by  Titus. 

In  the  Apocalypse,  we  have  set  before  us,  he 
says,  three  distinct  catastrophes : 

1.  The  fall  of  Jerusalem,  in  chapters  vi.-xi. 

2.  The  fall  of  Nero,  and  ultimately  of  Pagan 
Rome,  in  chapters  xii.— xix. 

3.  The  overthrow  of  Gog  and  Magog,  after  the 
close  of  the  millennium. 

There  is  no  reference  to  Papal  Rome  anywhere. 
The  prophetic  symbols,  from  the  beginning  of  the 
sixth  chapter  to  the  close  of  the  eleventh,  all  relate  to 
the  destruction  of  Jerusalem.  Those  from  the  twelfth 
to  the  nineteenth,  to  the  fall  of  Nero  and  of  Pagan 
Rome.  The  piincipal  reasons  assigned  for  referring 
all  the  debatable  parts  of  tlie  Apocalypse  to  the  for- 
mer two  of  these  catastrophes,  are  the  following : — 

1.  On  any  other  supposition,  the  symbols  of  the 
Apocalypse  would  not  have  been  understood  by 
those  to  whom  the  book  was  addressed,  nor  even 
by  John  himself. 

This  consideration  seems  to  have  had  great 
weight  in  the  mind  of  Professor  Stuart,  and  also 
of  Professor  Cowles,  as  both  writers  refer  to  it 
often,  and  in  various  connections.  Let  us  then  in- 
quire, for  a  moment,  how  much  it  is  likely  that 
John  understood  of  the  Apocalypse  at  the  time 
when  he  was  receiving  and  writing  it. 


REVIEWS  EXAMINED.  19 

John  knew  what  he  saw  in  vision — the  symbols, 
pictures,  and  images  that  were  presented.  He 
knew  what  he  heard  said  and  sung  among  the 
celestials.  He  knew  enough,  to  record  what  he 
had  seen  and  heard  in  plain  intelligible  language. 
But  did  he  know  to  what  particular  events  the 
symbols  which  he  employed — the  horsemen,  the 
locusts,  the  beasts,  the  trumpets,  the  vials,  etc., 
referred — what  they  were  designed  to  represent, 
so  that  he  could  have  written  out  a  clear  and  full 
explication  of  them  ?  I  doubt  it.  It  is  not  at  all 
likely  that  he  had  such  an  understanding  as  this  of 
what  he  was  writing.  Nor  was  such  knowledge 
on  his  part  at  all  necessary  to  accomplish  his  object 
in  preparing  the  work,  or  the  object  of  the  Spirit  in 
enabling  him  to  prepare  it.  This  was,  to  comfort 
the  afflicted  persecuted  people  of  God  with  the 
assurance,  that  all  heaven  was  in  sympathy  with 
them  in  their  trials,  and  that  they  were  sure  to  end 
in  victory  and  peace.  Such  was  the  immediate 
object  of  the  Apocalypse ;  and  this  could  be  as 
well  answered  without  a  particular  understanding 
of  the  significance  of  each  of  the  symbols,  as  with 
it. 

It  is  in  this  way  that  the  book  has  been  a  light 
and  a  comfort  to  the  Church  in  all  succeeding  ages. 
Christians  have  not  known — in  general  they  have 
not  pretended  to  know,  the  particular  significance 


20  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

of  tlie  symbols.  Yet  tliey  have  derived  mucli  in- 
struction and  comfort  from  the  book. 

Indeed,  the  knowledge  of  the  ancient  prophets, 
in  predicting  the  Messiah  and  the  way  of  salvation 
through  Him,  did  not  extend  much  farther  than  has 
been  here  represented ;  for  we  are  told  that  they 
searched  diligently  *  what,  or  what  manner  of  time, 
the  Spirit  of  Christ  which  was  in  them  did  signify, 
when  it  testified  beforehand  the  suiFerings  of  Christ, 
and  the  glory  that  should  follow '  (1  Pet.  i.  11). 

And,  so  far  as  John  understood  his  writings,  I 
suppose  the  Churches  to  which  they  were  addressed 
understood  them,  and  no  further.  They  knew  what 
John  had  written,  what  things  he  had  described, 
and  the  meaning  of  his  words.  But  did  their  know- 
ledge extend  much  beyond  this?  I  think  not. 
Further  knowledge  was  not  necessary  to  their  en- 
couragement and  comfort;  and  judging  from  the 
specimens  which  we  have  of  the  explications  and 
comments  of  the  early  Christians,  we  cannot  give 
them  much  credit  for  their  knowledge  of  the  Apo- 
calypse. They  early  began  to  allegorize  it  after 
the  fashion  of  the  times.  They  appealed  to  it 
in  support  of  their  millenarian  views,  which  had 
begun  to  prevail  before  the  Apocalypse  was 
written.  And  of  all  the  wild  vagaries  that  have 
ever  been  written  on  this  book,  some  of  their  in- 
terpretations  were    the   wildest.      Take,    for    ex- 


REVIEWS  EXAMINED.  21 

ample,  the  comments  of  Hippolytiis  on  Rev.  xii. 
'  The  woman  is  the  Church ;  the  sun  which  encom- 
passes her  means  the  Word  of  God ;  the  moon 
under  her  feet  indicates  that  her  splendour  is 
celestial.  The  crown  of  twelve  stars  indicates  the 
twelve  apostles ;  the  woes  of  parturiency  show 
that  the  Church  at  all  times  is  bringing  forth  the 
Word  of  God,  which  suffers  persecution  by  the 
world.  By  the  two  eagles'  wings  given  to  the 
woman,  in  order  to  aid  her  flight,  we  are  to  under- 
stand belief  in  Christ,  who,  on  the  cross,  spread  out 
His  two  hands  like  wings  for  a  protection  to  His 
followers.'  This  will  do  as  a  specimen  of  patristic 
interpretation. 

2.  Professor  Stuart,  and  others  who  follow  him, 
endeavour  to  support  their  theory  by  certain  repre- 
sentations of  the  Apocalypse,  which, — though  in  the 
midst  of  symbols,  and  themselves  manifestly  sym- 
bolical,— it  is  insisted  must  be  understood  literally. 

Thus,  because  the  144,000  sealed  ones  in  Rev. 
vii.  are  said  to  be  taken  from  the  twelve  tribes  of 
Israel,  it  is  thought  that  they  include  none  but 
believing  Jews, — the  same  that  took  warning  and 
fled  from  Jerusalem  when  the  city  was  destroyed. 
But  do  not  these  interpreters  know  that  the  whole 
Christian  Church  is  called  in  Scripture  'the  Israel 
of  God,'  though  a  vast  majority  of  its  members  are 
not,  and,  since  the  first  century,  never  have  been 


I'i,  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED 

converted  Jews?  As  well  miglit  it  be  inferred, 
since  the  names  of  '  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel '  are 
inscribed  over  the  gates  of  the  celestial  city,  chap- 
ter xxi.  12,  that  none  bnt  converted  Jews  can  ever 
pass  through  them  into  heaven. 

If  the  passage  before  us  is  to  be  understood 
literally,  then,  not  only  were  144,000  converted 
Jews  sealed,  but  12,000  were  sealed  from  each  of 
the  twelve  tribes.  Now,  does  any  one  believe  such 
a  statement  as  this?  Professor  Stuart  did  not 
believe  it.^  Clearly  the  passage  is  to  be  understood, 
not  literally,  but  symbolically ;  and  thus  understood, 
it  is  easy  of  interpretation. 

In  Rev.  xi.  1,  2,  John  s?Cys,  that  there  was  given 
him  a  reed,  and  he  was  commanded  to  rise  and  mea- 
sure the  temple  of  God,  and  the  altar,  and  them  that 
worship  therein.  *  But  the  court  that  is  without  the 
temple  leave  out,  and  measure  it  not ;  for  it  is  given 
unto  the  Gentiles.  And  the  holy  city  shall  they 
tread  under  foot  forty  and  two  months.'  From  this, 
it  is  confidently  affirmed,  that  the  temple  at  Jeru- 
salem was  standing  when  the  passage  was  written. 

The  whole  question  resolves  itself  into  this  :  Is 
this  passage  to  be  understood  literally,  or  symboli- 
cally ?  If  literally,  then  John,  on  the  isle  of  Patmos, 
in  the  ^gean  sea,  was  commanded  to  take  a  mea- 
suring-rod and  hie  away  to  the  literal  Jerusalem, 

^  See  Commentaiy,  vol.  ii.  p.  173. 


REVIEWS  EXAMINED.  23 

and  measure  the  temple,  and  the  altar,  and  them 
that  worship  therein !  And  now,  I  ask,  Who  be- 
lieves this  ?  Who  can  believe  it  ?  But  this  is  not 
all.  In  measuring  the  temple  and  the  altar,  John 
was  to  leave  out  the  court  of  the  temple,  and  not 
measure  it ;  for  this  was  given  to  the  Gentiles  to  be 
trodden  under  foot.  According  to  this,  interpreted 
literally,  the  Romans  were  not  to  destroy  the  temple 
itself,  but  only  the  court ;  whereas  it  is  certain  that 
they  did  destroy  the  entire  temple,  court  and  all, 
leaving  not  one  stone  upon  another. 

What  then  are  we  to  say  of  the  representation 
in  Rev.  xi.  1,  2  ?  Is  it  to  be  understood  literally  or 
symbolically?  Literally,  it  cannot  be  understood. 
So  says  Professor  Stuart  himself.-^  But  symboli- 
cally understood,  the  interpretation  is  easy.  The 
temple  and  the  holy  city  signify  the  Church  of  God, 
which  was  to  be  persecuted  and  trodden  down  of 
the  wicked  for  a  given  time,  but  ultimately  was  to 
be  delivered,  and  to  triumph. 

It  is  further  said,  that  the  two  witnesses  spoken 
of  in  this  chapter,  must  have  been  slain  in  the  literal 
Jerusalem,  because  their  dead  bodies  are  said  to 
'  lie  in  the  street  of  the  great  city,  which  spirit- 
ually is  called  Sodom  and  Egypt,  where  also  our 
Lord  was  crucified.'  Upon  this,  I  have  only  to  ask, 
Are  Sodom  and  Egypt  to  be  understood  literally? 

^  Vol.  ii.  p.  213. 


24  TEE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

And  if  not,  why  is  Jerusalem  to  be  taken  literally? 
And  if  the  whole  passage  is  to  be  understood  sym- 
bolically, as  it  certainly  must  be,  then  it  furnishes 
no  more  evidence  that  the  literal  Jerusalem  was 
standing  when  John  wrote  the  Apocalypse,  than 
that  the  literal  Sodom  was. 

3.  Professor  Stuart  claims  credit  for  his  theory 
of  the  Apocalypse,  on  account  of  the  absurd  expli- 
cations which  have  been  given  on  the  commonly 
received  theory.  'Men  have  regarded  the  Apoca- 
lypse as  a  prophetic  syllabus  of  all  civil  and  eccle- 
siastical history,  from  the  author  s  time  to  the  end 
of  the  world.' 

We  admit  that  a  great  many  absurd  and  foolish 
things  have  been  said  by  commentators,  though 
we  doubt  whether  any  have  gone  so  far  as  Pro- 
fessor Stuart  represents,  making  the  Apocalypse  a 
syllabus  of  all  civil  and  ecclesiastical  history.  But 
have  there  not  been  as  absurd  explications  by  Ger- 
mans and  Roman  Catholics,  who  in  general  adopt 
the  theory  of  Professor  Stuart  ?  It  would  be  easy 
to  show  as  much  as  this,  without  looking  beyond 
the  pages  of  Stuart's  Commentary. 

Professors  Stuart  and  Cowles  think  to  avoid  such 
absurdities,  by  saying  that  most  of  the  symbols 
which  John  employs  have  no  particular  significance. 
They  are  the  mere  dress  and  furniture  of  the  poem. 
The  seals  and  the  trumpets  mean  nothing,  except 


REVIEWS  EXAMINED.  25 

that  Jerusalem  was  to  be  destroyed,  as  besieged 
cities  commonly  are,  by  the  sword,  the  famine,  and 
pestilence. 

In  a  few  instances,  however,  these  men  venture 
upon  the  interpretation  of  symbols ;  and,  we  doubt, 
whether  explications  more  absurd  were  ever  uttered. 
As  before  remarked.  Professor  Stuart  makes  the 
beast,  whose  head  was  wounded  to  death,  and  after- 
wards healed,  to  be  Nero  ;  because  some  of  the  old 
heathen  soothsayers  had  a  groundless  prediction, 
that  when  Nero  died  he  would  be  restored  to  life. 
And  Professor  Ccwles  interprets  the  seventh  trum- 
pet,— on  the  sounding  of  which  '  great  voices  were 
heard  in  heaven  saying,  The  kingdoms  of  this  world 
are  become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  of  His 
Christ,' — as  denoting  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  ! ! 
'  The  seventh  angel's  trump  involves  this ;  nothing 
less,  nothing  more,'  p.  138.  His  only  reason  for 
this  interpretation  is,  thai  his  theory  demands  it. 
Jerusalem  must  be  destroyed  just  at  this  point, 
and  the  seventh  trumpet  must  denote  it. 

My  objections  to  Professor  Stuart's  scheme  of 
interpretation — and  that  of  Professor  Cowles  is 
much  the  same — are,  in  brief,  as  follows  : — 

1.  He  represents  his  first  catastrophe — the  de- 
struction of  Jerusalem — as  being  described  in  Rev. 
chapter  xi. ;  whereas,  in  truth,  there  is  no  catas- 
trophe there.     Let  any  reader  look  over  the  chapter, 

D 


26  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

and  see  if  he  can  find  it.  There  is  first  the  measur- 
ing of  the  mystical  temple,  signifying  the  Chm'ch, 
and  a  leaving  out  of  the  court,  which  is  given  to 
the  Gentiles,  who  are  to  tread  down  the  holy  city — 
another  symbol  of  God's  living  Church — forty  and 
two  months.  Then  follows  the  testimony  of  the 
witnesses  in  sack-cloth,  their  death,  and  their  re- 
surrection. This  resurrection  probably  took  place 
at  the  time  of  the  reformation  from  Popery,  when 
there  were  mighty  changes  in  the  Roman  earth — 
all  prefigured  by  an  earthquake,  and  the  fall  of  the 
tenth  part  of  the  city — the  Popish  hierarchy.  That 
the  city  here  spoken  of,  a  tenth  part  of  which  fell, 
cannot  be  the  literal  Jerusalem,  is  evident  from  the 
fact,  that  Jerusalem  was  totally  destroyed  by  the 
Romans  shortly  after  the  earthquake  of  the  Refor- 
mation. Tlie  seventh  trumpet  sounds,  and  the  mil- 
lennial period  is  announced.  Such  is  a  brief  an- 
alysis of  this  chapter ;  and  where  in  it  are  we  to  look 
for  any  such  great  catastrophe  as  the  destruction 
of  Jerusalem  by  the  Romans  ?  I  cannot  find  it ;  nor 
do  I  believe  any  sober  interpreter  can. 

2.  But  if  there  be  such  a  catastrophe  here  as 
Professor  Stuart  represents,  it  ought  to  be  called 
the  second,  and  not  the  first.  The  second  catas- 
trophe, pertaining  to  Nero,  is  in  the  19th  chapter. 
But  Nero  was  slain  at  least  two  years  before  Jeru- 
salem was  destroyed, — in  which  time  there  reigned 


REVIEWS  EXAMINED.  27 

no  less  than  four  emperors.  Nero  is  supposed  to 
have  died  in  the  year  68  ;  but  Jerusalem  was  de- 
stroyed, under  Vespasian,  in  the  year  70.  Why 
then,  we  ask,  was  the  first  catastrophe  made  the 
second,  and  the  second  the  first  ?  Why  were  not 
these  events  predicted,  if  predicted  at  all,  in  the 
order  of  time  ? 

3.  The  symbols  of  destruction  in  the  Revelation, 
which  Professor  Stuart  refers  to  Jerusalem,  are  said 
by  the  writer  to  apply  to  the  ichole  earth — that  is, 
the  Roman  earth.  Thus,  power  was  given  to  him 
that  sat  on  the  red  horse  to  take  peace  from  tlie 
earth.  And  power  was  given  unto  him  on  the  pale 
horse  '  over  the  fourth  part  of  the  earth,  to  kill  with 
the  sword,  and  with  hunger,  and  with  the  beasts  of 
the  earth'  (chap.  vi.  4,  8).  And  when  the  first 
trumpet  sounded,  there  followed  hail  and  fire, 
mingled  with  blood,  and  they  were  cast  upon  the 
earth  (chap.  viii.  7).  In  Asia  Minor,  in  the  last  half 
of  the  first  century,  the  term  earth  could  never  have 
been  understood  as  referring  to  the  little  and  remote 
province  of  Judea.  It  must  have  meant  the  Roman 
empire. 

4.  Those  who  were  smitten  by  the  blast  of  the 
sixth  trumpet, — some  of  whom  were  slain,  and 
some  spared, — could  not  have  been  Jews ;  since 
they  are  expressly  said  to  have  been  idolaters. 
'  The  rest  of  the  men  that  were  not  killed  by  these 


28  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

plagues  yet  repented  not  of  the  works  of  their 
hcands,  that  they  should  not  worship  devils,  and 
idols  of  gold,  and  silver,  and  brass,  and  stone,  and 
of  wood:  which  can  neither  hear,  nor  see,  nor 
walk '  (chap.  ix.  20).  How  is  it  possible  to  apply 
this  passage  to  the  Jews,  who  were  not  idolaters?' 

5.  In  the  same  chapter  (ix.),  the  number  of 
horsemen  drawn  together  to  the  battle,  and  drawn 
from  the  East — the  region  of  the  Euphrates — is 
two  hundred  thousand  thousand.  Was  an}^  such 
army,  or  any  thing  like  it,  or  any  army  at  all, 
drawn  from  the  region  of  the  Euphrates  to  fight 
against  Jerusalem  at  the  time  of  its  overthrow. 
Let  those  who  have  read  the  history  decide. 

6.  The  woman  described  iu  chapter  xii.,  Pro- 
fessors Stuart  and  Cowles  both  take  to  be  the  virgin 
Mary,  giving  birth  to  the  Saviour  of  the  world, 
and  then  fleeing  to  her  hiding-place  in  Egypt ; 
thus  looking  backward  a  period  of  seventy  years, 
and  not  forward,  as  a  prophet  should  do,  into  the 
future.  And  why  should  this  little  scrap  of  his- 
tory— if  it  be  history — be  thrown  in  here,  in  con- 
nection with  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  ? 

7.  This  scheme  of  interpretation  makes  a  long 
stride  from  the  fall  of  Nero  in  the  first  century,  or 
of  Pagan  Rome  in  the  time  of  Constantine,  to  the 
incoming  of  the  millennium.  Of  all  the  intervening 
space, — so  full  of  incident  and  of  interest  to  the 


REVIEWS  EXAMINED.  29 

Cliurch  of  God, — the  writer  of  the  Apocalypse  is 
thought  to  take  not  the  sHghtest  notice.  On  any 
theory  of  interpretation,  would  not  this  be  regarded 
as  a  strange  fact,  and  a  strong  objection  ? 

8.  But  my  principal  objection  to  Professor  Stuart's 
interpretation  of  the  Apocalypse  is,  that  he  has 
fixed  upon  a  wrong  time  for  the  writing  of  the 
book,  and  this  vitiates  and  nullifies  all  his  reason- 
ings on  the  subject.  We  have  shown,  we  think 
conclusively,  that  this  book  was  written,  not 
during  the  persecution  under  Nero,  but  thirty  years 
later,  in  the  time  of  Domitian — long  after  Nero 
was  dead  and  Jerusalem  destroyed.  And  this 
changes  the  whole  aspect  and  import  of  the  book. 
Instead  of  being  filled  up  with  symbols  and  predic- 
tions in  regard  to  these  two  events,  there  is  not 
the  slightest  reference  to  either  of  them,  as  I  have 
before  remarked,  in  all  that  the  Apostle  has 
written. 


30  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE  FIRST  THREE  CHiVPTERS  COXSn)ERED. 

REVELATION,  CHAPS  I.,  n.,  III. 

PATMOS,  the  place  of  Jolm's  baiiisliment,  is  a 
desolate  island  in  the  iEgean  sea,  lying  be- 
tween Icaria  and  the  promontory  of  Miletus.  It  is 
some  six  or  eight  miles  in  length,  but  its  average 
breadth  is  scarcely  more  than  one  mile.  It  has  no 
trees  or  rivers,  and  very  little  land  that  is  capable 
of  cultivation.  Owing  to  its  isolated  and  desolate 
character,  it  was  frequently  used  by  the  Romans  as 
a  place  of  banishment  for  criminals. 

During  his  exile  on  this  dreaiy  spot,  the  vener- 
able Apostle  was  not  entirely  deserted.  In  the 
absence  of  earthly  friends  and  comforts,  he  seems 
to  have  enjoyed  the  most  precious  communion  with 
Christ,  and  the  most  glorious  manifestations  or 
visions  of  His  presence.  We  have  a  glowing  ac- 
count of  one  of  these  visions, — perliaps  the  first  of 
them, — in  the  first  chapter  of  the  Revelation.  It 
occurred,  like  the  Pentecost,  on  the  first  day  of  the 
w^eek — '  the  Lord's  day,'  thus  putting  a  new  honom- 
upon  what  was  to  be  the  Sabbath  of  the  Christian 
dispensation.     'I  was  in  the  Spirit  on  the  Lord's 


REVELATION,  CHAPS.  /.,  //.,  III.  31 

day,  and  I  heard  behind  me  a  great  voice,  as  of  a 
trumpet,  saying,  I  am  Alpha  and  Omega,  the 
first  and  the  last :  and.  What  thou  seest,  write  in  a 
book,  and  send  it  unto  the  seven  Churches  which  are 
in  Asia  .  .  .  And  I  turned  to  see  the  voice  that  spake 
with  me.  And,  being  turned,  I  saw  seven  golden 
candlesticks ;  and  in  the  midst  of  the  seven  candle- 
sticks one  like  unto  the  Son  of  man,  clothed  with  a 
garment  down  to  the  foot,  and  girt  about  the  paps 
with  a  golden  girdle.  His  head  and  his  hairs  were 
white  like  wool,  as  white  as  snow ;  and  his  eyes 
wxre  as  a  flame  of  fire ;  and  his  feet  like  unto  fine 
brass,  as  if  they  burned  in  a  furnace ;  and  his  voice 
as  the  sound  of  many  waters.  And  he  had  in  his 
right  hand  seven  stars ;  and  out  his  mouth  went  a 
sharp  two-edged  sword ;  and  his  countenance  was 
as  the  sun  shineth  in  his  strength.'  Such  was  the 
appearance  of  the  glorified  Son  of  God,  manifesting 
himself  to  His  suffering  disciple  on  this  memorable 
occasion. 

After  the  first  surprise  of  His  appearance  had 
passed  away,  Christ  proceeds  to  give  to  John  His 
commission  to  ivrite  the  book  of  Revelation,  the  very 
book  on  which  we  are  commenting.  And  in  the 
commission  itself,  a  threefold  division  of  the  book 
is  indicated.  'Write,'  says  He,  ''the  things  which  thou 
hast  seen ;  and  the  things  which  are,  and  the  things  ivhich 
shall  he  hereafter.^ 

^  P^"*  Of  THK 

/^  M        out       ^  V  • 


32  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

According  to  the  division  here  indicated,  the 
first  part  of  tlie  book  is  comprised  in  the  first  chap- 
ter. For  here  is  the  record  which  John  made  of 
the  resplendent  and  glorious  vision  which  he  had 
witnessed.  I  have  no  occasion  to  remark  par- 
ticularly on  this  part  of  the  book. 

The  second  part  of  the  book, — '  the  things  whicli 
ar^,' — ^is  comprised  in  the  second  and  third  chapters. 
Here  we  have  the  messages  of  instruction  and 
warning  wliich  were  to  be  sent  to  the  seven 
Churches  in  Asia.  This  part  of  the  book  is  not 
prophetical  at  all.  It  is  simply  a  record  of  the 
things  which  are. 

My  plan  does  not  require  me  to  go  into  a  par- 
ticular explanation  of  this  second  part  of  the  book. 
And  yet,  considering  the  interest  and  importance 
of  these  messages  of  love — addressed  primarily  to 
the  Churches  of  Asia,  but  recorded  for  the  benefit  of 
all  the  Cliurches, — I  cannot  consent  to  pass  from 
them  without  a  few  general  remarks. 

1.  Though  intended  for  the  Churches  to  which 
they  were  addressed,  they  are  all  directed  to  the 
angels  of  these  Churches.  By  these  angels  of  the 
Churches,  we  are  to  understand,  I  think,  their  prin- 
cipal pastors.  In  all  the  large  Churches  planted  by 
the  apostles,  there  were,  at  the  first,  several  pres- 
byters or  elders.  Such  were  the  elders  of  the 
Church  at  Jerusalem,  and  of  the  Church  at  Ephesus. 


REVELATION,  CHAPS.  /.,  //.,  ///.  33 

When  these  elders  met  together  for  business  or 
devotion,  they  would  need  some  one  to  be  their 
moderator  or  president.  By  the  close  of  the  first 
century,  the  presiding  elder  had  come  to  be  re- 
garded as  a  standing  officer,  and  in  process  of  time 
appropriated  to  himself  the  name  of  bishop.  It  was 
in  this  way  that  the  distinction  between  bishop  and 
presbyter  crept  into  the  Church, — a  distinction  en- 
tirely unknown  in  the  days  of  the  apostles.  These 
presiding  elders  were,  I  suppose,  the  angels  of  the 
Churches  in  Asia,  to  whom  the  messages  of  the 
Saviour  were  primarily  directed. 

2.  These  messages  were  all  prefaced  by  men- 
tioning some  of  the  appearances,  doings,  or  attri- 
butes of  the  glorified  Saviour — those  which,  in  the 
first  chapter,  had  been  ascribed  to  Him.  Thus,  in 
the  epistle  to  the  Church  at  Ephesus,  He  is  said  to 
hold  '  the  stars  in  His  right  hand,'  and  to  walk  '  in 
the  midst  of  the  seven  golden  candlesticks;'  in  the 
epistle  to  the  Church  at  Smyrna,  He  is  'the  first 
and  the  last,  which  was  dead  and  is  alive  ; '  in  the 
epistle  to  the  Church  at  Pergamos,  He  'hath  the 
sharp  sword  with  two  edges;'  in  the  epistle  to  the 
Church  at  Thyatira,  He  '  hath  his  eyes  like  a  flame 
of  fire,  and  his  feet  like  fine  brass;'  in  the  epistle  to 
the  Church  at  Sardis,  He  '  hath  the  seven  Spirits  of 
God,  and  the  seven  stars;'  in  the  epistle  to  the 
Church  at  Philadelphia,  He  is  '  He  that  is  holy,  He 


34:  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

tliat  is  true,  He  that  hath  the  key  of  David,  He  that 
openeth,  and  no  man  shutteth,  and  shutteth,  and  no 
man  openeth ; '  in  the  epistle  to  the  Church  at  Lao- 
dicea,  He  '  is  the  Amen,  the  faithful  and  true 
witness,  the  beginning  of  the  creation  of  God.'^ 
These  several  prefaces  are  all  adapted  to  arrest 
attention,  and  make  an  impression ;  and  it  may  be 
that  each  was  selected  with  special  reference  to  the 
state  of  the  particular  Church. 

3.  These  introductions  are  followed,  in  every 
instance,  with  the  startling  announcement,  ^  I  know 
thy  works.''  Yes !  whether  faithful  or  unfaithful,  warm 
or  lukewarm,  heretical  or  otherwise,  true  or  false, 
your  case  is  all  open  to  Him  with  whom  you  have 
to  do  :  ^  I  know  thy  works  J 

4.  These  epistles  are  messages  of  mingled  com- 
mendation and  reproof,  in  bestowing  which  the 
speaker  is  eminently  pungent,  direct,  and  faithful, 
— ^like  one  speaking  with  authority  from  heaven.  In 
the  Churches  at  Sardis  and  Laodicea,  the  Saviour 
finds  little  or  nothing  to  commend ;  in  the  Churches 
at  Smyrna  and  Philadelphia,  He  finds  little  to  re- 
prove ;  while,  in  the  remaining  three,  there  are 
some  things  to  be  commended,  and  others  to  be 
censured. 

5.  In  administering  reproof,  these  epistles  are 

^  ApxTj,  the  head,  the  governor  of  tlie  creation,  the  prime  efficient 
of  it. 


REVELATION,  CHAPS.  /.,  i/.,  HI.  35 

patterns  of  heavenly  wisdom,  tenderness,  and  fidelity, 
which,  cannot  be  too  closely  studied  and  imitated 
by  all  who  are  called  to  the  discharge  of  this 
painful  duty.  Take,  for  example,  the  Church  at 
Ephesus.  The  Saviour  commences  by  praising  this 
Church;  and  He  continues  His  commendations  as 
though  He  could  never  stop,  'I  know  thy  works, 
and  thy  labour,  and  thy  patience,  and  how  thou 
canst  not  bear  them  that  are  evil,  and  thou  hast 
tried  them  which  say  they  are  apostles,  and  are 
not,  and  hast  found  them  liars;  and  hast  borne,  and 
hast  patience,  and  for  my  name's  sake  hast  laboured, 
and  hast  not  fainted.*  Having  said  as  much  as  this, 
the  speaker  can  now  proceed  and  say  anything. 
He  cannot  possibly  give  offence  by  anything  which 
will  be  likely  to  follow.  'Nevertheless,  I  have 
somewhat  against  thee,  because  thou  hast  left  thy 
first  love.'  When  will  reprovers  and  reformers 
learn  to  deal  with  delinquents  after  this  manner? 
How  much  reproof  is  worse  than  wasted,  by  the  in- 
dulgence of  a  different  spirit,  and  by  pursuing  a 
difierent  course  ? 

6.  These  epistles  are  filled  up  with  earnest  ex- 
hortations to  repentance  and  reformation,  with  the 
richest  promises  in  case  of  amendment,  and  with  the 
most  terrific  denimciations  upon  those  who  persist 
in  evil.  '■  Eemember,  therefore,  from  whence  thou 
art  fallen,  and  repent,  and  do  the  first  works.'     '  Re- 


36  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

pent,  or  else  I  will  come  unto  thee  qiilcldy,  and  will 
figlit  against  tliee  with  the  sword  of  my  mouth.* 
*  Be  watchful,  and  strengthen  the  things  which 
remain,  that  are  ready  to  die.'  '  To  him  that  over- 
cometh  will  I  grant  to  sit  with  me  in  my  throne, 
even  as  I  also  overcame,  and  am  set  down  with  my 
Father  in  His  throne.* 

7.  Considering  the  Author  of  these  warnings, 
exhortations,  and  promises,  and  the  circumstances 
under  which  they  were  uttered,  we  are  not  sur- 
prised to  hear  each  message  close  with  the  declara- 
tion :  *  He  that  hath  an  ear,  let  him  hear  what  the 
Spirit  saith  imto  the  Chiu'ches.* 

May  each  one  of  us  regard  this  solemn  declara- 
tion as  addressed  particularly  to  ourselves.  God 
has  given  us  not  only  ears  to  hear,  but  means  and 
advantages  for  understanding  and  improvement. 
Let  us  then  hear  these  words  of  the  Spirit  to  the 
Churches,  and  heed  and  obey  them,  that  we  may 
be  heirs  of  the  precious  promises  contained  in  them, 
and  be  prepared  for  the  blessings  which  Christ  has 
in  store  for  all  His  people. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  IV.,   V.  37 


CHAPTER  IV. 

INTRODUCTION  TO  TIIE  PROPHETICAL  PORTION. 
REVELATION  CHAPS.  IV'.,  V. 

IN  my  last  chapter,  I  reviewed  the  first  three  chap- 
ters of  the  Revelation,  containing  an  account 
of  the  writer's  first  vision  on  Patmos, — a  vision  of 
the  glorified  Son  of  God ;  together  with  His  mes- 
sages to  the  seven  Churches  of  Asia.  In  the  com- 
mission to  John  to  write  this  book,  I  have  said  that 
a  threefold  division  of  it  was  indicated  by  the  Sa- 
viour. John  was  to  write  the  things  which  he  had 
seen,  the  things  which  are,  and  those  which  shall  he 
hereafter.  The  two  first  of  these  divisions  are  in- 
cluded in  the  chapters  already  considered.  The 
third  part  of  the  book — the  prophetical  part — com- 
mences properly  Avith  the  sixth  chapter.  The  fourth 
and  fifth  chapters — in  w^hich  is  presented  a  bright 
vision  of  heaven — may  be  regarded  as  introductory 
to  the  third  or  prophetical  part.  To  these  two 
chapters  I  shall  now  call  attention. 

In  the  commencement  of  the  fourth  chapter, 
John  tells  us  that  he  '  looked,  and,  behold,  a  door 
was  opened  in  heaven :  and  the  first  voice  which  I 
heard  was  as  it  were  of  a  trumpet  talking  with  me  ; 


38  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

which  said,  Come  up  hither,  and  I  will  show  the 
things  which  must  be  hereafter.  And  immediately 
I  was  in  the  Spirit ;  and,  behold,  a  throne  was  set 
in  heaven,  and  one  sat  on  the  throne.  And  His 
appearance  was  like  to  that  of  a  jasper,  or  a  sardine 
stone ;  and  there  was  a  rainbow  round  about  the 
throne,  in  sight  like  unto  an  emerald.' 

The  personage  whom  John  saw  sitting  on  the 
throne  was,  undoubtedly,  the  eternal  Father, — the 
grand  executive  head  of  the  Divine  administration, — 
whose  office-work  it  is  to  guard  the  honours  of  the 
eternal  throne.  The  rainbow  round  about  the  throne 
was  a  bow  of  promise,  indicating  that  the  throne  of 
the  Eternal  is  One,  not  only  of  judgment,  but  of  grace. 
John  '  saw  seven  lamps  of  fire  burning  before  the 
throne,  which  are  the  seven  spirits  of  God.'  This  I 
understand  to  be  a  symbolic  representation  of  the 
Holy  Spirit.  The  Hebrews  regarded  seven  as  a 
perfect  number.  Hence  the  seven  lamps,  or  seven 
spirits,  denote  God's  Holy  Spirit. 

John  also  saw  *  round  about  the  throne  four  and 
twenty  seats,  and  upon  the  seats  four  and  twenty 
elders  sitting,  clothed  in  white  raiment,  and  having 
on  their  heads  crowns  of  gold.'  He  saw,  also,  four 
living  creatures — improperly  translated  in  our  Bibles 
*  beasts ' — '  full  of  eyes  before  and  behind '  (chap.  iv. 
4-9). 

It  is  generally  understood  that  the  four  and 


UEVELATION,  CHAPTERS  IV.,   V.  39 

twenty  elders  are  representatives  of  the  redeemed 
Church  in  heaven.  But  '  the  living  creatures,'  who 
are  they,  and  what  do  they  represent?  In  ap- 
pearance, they  are  like  '  the  living  creatures '  which 
Ezekiel  and  Isaiah  saw  in  the  commencement  of 
their  prophetic  visions,  and  w^hich  are  called  cheru- 
bim and  seraphim.  I  have  no  doubt  that  •'  the  living 
creatures '  of  the  Apocalypse  may  properly  be  called 
cherubim.  But  what  are  cherubim?  We  have  fre- 
quent mention  of  them  and  their  doings  in  the  Old 
Testament.  Thus,  when  our  first  parents  were  ex- 
pelled from  the  garden  of  Eden,  there  were  *  placed, 
on  the  east  of  it,  cherubim  and  a  flaming  sword, 
which  turned  every  way  to  keep  the  way  of  the 
tree  of  life'  (Gen.  iii.  24).  The  cherubim  that  Eze- 
kiel saw  are  represented  as  bearing  up  the  throne  of 
God,  and  as  constituting,  by  their  wings  and  wheels, 
the  chariot  of  His  glory  (Ezek.  i.  2Q  ;  x.  1).  It  is 
said  of  the  God  of  Israel,  in  the  eighteenth  Psalm : 
'  He  rode  upon  a  cherub,  and  did  fly ;  he  did  fly 
upon  the  wings  of  the  wind.' 

Of  the  symbolical  import  of  the  cherubim, 
various  opinions  have  been  entertained.  By  Mr 
Hutchinson  and  his  followers,  they  were  regarded 
as  emblematical  of  the  Trinity.  But  this  idea  is 
too  absurd  to  require  consideration.  The  God  of 
Israel  is  always  represented  as  distinct  from  the 
cherubim.     He  is  served  and  worshipped  by  them. 


40  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

He  dwelt  *  between  tlie  clierubim/  and  could  not 
liave  been  represented  by  these  symbols. 

Some  have  tliouglit  that  the  cherubim  were 
symbolical  representations  oi\\\Q powers  and  processes 
of  nature, — those  through  w^hich  God  is  carrying 
into  effect  His  providential  designs.  But  I  cannot 
be  of  this  opinion.  They  are  not  personifications, 
but  personal  beings.  Personal  offices  and  acts  are 
ascribed  to  them.  They  unite  wdth  other  personal 
beings  in  singing  praises  to  God  and  the  Lamb 
(See  Isa.  vi.  3;  Kev.  v.  8-11). 

And  not  only  are  they  personal  beings,  but 
heavenly  beings.  Then*  home  is  in  heaven.  Their 
work  and  Avorship  are  near  the  eternal  throne. 

Are  they,  then,  a  distinct  class  of  heavenly 
beings ;  or  are  they  a  superior  order  of  existing 
classes — ^lioly  angels  and  redeemed  souls  ?  I  in- 
cline to  the  latter  opinion.  We  know  of  but  two 
distinct  classes  of  heavenly  beings, — angels  and 
glorified  men.  Yet  among  these,  we  read  of  differ- 
ent orders, — some  higher  and  some  lower ;  some 
near  the  throne,  and  others  at  a  greater  distance 
from  it.  There  are  '  ^principalities  and  powers  in 
heavenly  places.'  There  are  angels  and  archangels, 
cherubim  and  seraphim.  And  of  those  who  have 
gone  from  earth  to  heaven,  some  are  farther  ad- 
vanced than  others ;  since  every  one  is  to  be  re- 
warded according  to  his  works. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  IV.,  V.  41 

The  cherubim  and  seraphim,  I  think,  are  among 
the  highest  order  of  celestial  beings — perhaps  the 
very  highest — who  stand  nearest  the  Eternal,  and 
are  specially  the  servants  of  His  throne. 

All  the  holy  angels  are,  indeed,  the  servants  of 
God.  They  fly  on  His  errands  of  mercy  and  of 
judgment.  They  '  do  His  commandments,  hearken- 
ing unto  the  voice  of  His  word.'  Yet  some  may  be 
more  specially  so  than  others,  standing  nearer  to 
God,  and  engaged  more  directly  in  His  service  ; 
and  this,  as  it  seems  to  me,  is  true  of  the  cherubim. 
They  are  emphatically  the  servants  of  God\s  throne. 

And  this  agrees  with  all  that  we  hear  of  them 
in  the  Scriptures.  In  the  Jewish  tabernacle  and 
temple,  where  were  figures  of  cherubim,  their  place 
was  close  by  the  glorious  Shekinah — the  visible 
manifestation  of  the  presence  of  the  Most  High. 
And  when  Isaiah  '  saw  the  Lord  sitting  upon  His 
throne,  high  and  lifted  up,  above  it  stood  the  sera- 
phim, crying  one  to  another.  Holy,  holy,  holy  is  the 
Lord  God  of  hosts.'  The  cherubim  which  Ezekiel 
saw  were  in  a  still  more  obvious  attitude  of  service. 
As  I  just  now  said,  they  are  represented  as  bearing 
up  the  throne  of  God,  and  as  constituting  the 
chariot  of  His  glory.  The  Psalmist  represents  the 
Almighty  as  riding  upon  a  cherub — 

'  On  church  and  on  cherubim. 
Full  royally  He  rode.' 
F 


42  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

In  the  Revelation,  too,  tlie  living  creatures,  the 
cherubim,  are  represented  as  having  their  places 
'  in  the  midst  of  the  throne^  and  round  about  it.' 

That  this  place  of  honour  is  occupied,  and  has 
been  from  the  beginning,  by  a  superior  order  of 
angels,  is  indubitable.  But  is  it  occupied  by  the 
angels  only  ?  Or  do  a  portion  of  the  ransomed 
ones  share  with  them  in  this  service  and  honour  ? 
But  for  a  single  passage, — and  that  one  in  the 
chapters  we  are  considering, — we  might  feel  con- 
strained to  answer  this  question  in  the  negative. 
In  the  vision  before  us,  '  the  living  creatures,'  the 
cherubim,  who  are  *  in  the  midst  of  the  throne,  and 
round  about,'  unite  with  the  four  and  twenty  elders 
in  singing  the  new  song  of  redeeming  mercy  (chap, 
iv.  10, 11).  And  when  the  Lamb  had  taken  the  book 
out  of  the  hands  of  Him  that  sat  upon  the  throne, 
'  the  four  li^dng  creatures,  and  the  four  and  twenty 
elders,  fell  down  before  the  Lamb,  .  .  .  and  they 
sung  a  new  song,  saying,  Thou  art  worthy  to  take 
the  book,  and  to  open  the  seals  thereof;  for  thou 
wast  slain,  and  hast  redeemed  us  to  God  by  Thy 
blood,  out  of  every  kindred,  and  tongue,  and  people, 
and  nation '  (chap.  v.  9). 

There  is  no  evading  the  force  of  this  passage. 
The  living  creatures,  the  cherubim,  do  here  unite 
with  the  other  representatives  of  the  ransomed 
Church,  in  singing  the  song  of  redeeming  mercy — 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  IV.,  V.  43 

a  song  which  none  can  ever  learn  but  those  who 
have  been  redeemed  from  among  men.  (See  Rev. 
xiv.  3.)  This  passage,  therefore,  which  has  long 
been  a  puzzle  to  commentators,  and  which  many 
have  tried  to  explain  away,  I  regard  as  a  glorious 
revelation.  It  assures  us  of  the  high  honour  which 
is  put  upon  the  saints,  or  upon  a  portion  of  them, 
in  the  heavenly  world.  Our  Saviour  tells  us  that 
*  they  shall  be  as  the  angels,'  and  ^  equal  to  the 
angels ; '  but  we  are  here  informed  that  they  are  to 
be  numbered  with  cherubim  and  seraphim, — among 
the  highest  order  of  celestial  spirits,  who  stand 
nearest  the  Eternal,  and  are  em]Dhatically  the  ser- 
vants of  His  throne. 

The  faces  and  forms  of  these  cherubim  have 
commonly  been  considered, — and,  I  think,  justly, — 
as  indicative  of  their  characters,  their  properties, 
their  powers.  The  first  was  like  a  lion,  to  indicate 
their  courage  and  power;  the  second  was  like  a 
calf,  or  young  ox,  to  indicate  their  patience  of 
labour ;  the  third  had  the  face  of  a  man,  to  indicate 
their  intelligence ;  and  the  fourth  was  like  a  flying 
eagle,  to  indicate  the  rapidity  of  their  motions  in 
accomplishing  the  service  of  God.  They  were  also 
furnished  with  wings,  and  '  were  full  of  eyes  before 
and  behind, — still  further  to  indicate  the  properties 
we  have  ascribed  to  them. 

But  without  dwelling  longer  on  the  living  crea- 


44  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

tures,  the  cherubim,  let  us  proceed  to  the  re- 
mainmg  parts  of  the  vision  under  consideration. 

John  saw  '  in  the  right  hand  of  Him  that  sat 
upon  the  throne  a  book  written  witliin  and  on  the 
back  side,  sealed  with  seven  seals.'  And  he  saw  '  a 
strong  angel  proclaiming  with  a  loud  voice,  Who  is 
worthy  to  open  the  book,  and  to  loose  the  seals 
thereof?  And  no  man  in  heaven,  nor  in  earth, 
neither  under  the  earth,  was  able  to  open  the  book, 
neither  to  look  thereon'  (chap.  v.  1—3). 

This  book  which  John  saw  was  not  enclosed  in 
covers,  like  our  books.  It  was  a  great  roll  of  parch- 
ment, closely  rolled  up,  and  sealed  with  seven  seals ; 
so  that  when  one  seal  was  broken,  it  could  be  un- 
rolled a  certain  way,  to  disclose  what  was  behind  it; 
and  when  another  seal  was  broken,  it  could  be  un- 
rolled fiirther,  to  disclose  more.  This  was  the  book 
of  prophecy — the  book  of  God's  inscrutable  pur- 
poses— into  which  no  created  being  in  heaven,  or 
on  earth,  or  anywhere  else,  was  able  to  look. 

And  John  says,  *  I  wept  much,  because  no  one 
was  found  able  to  open  the  book,  neither  to  look 
thereon.  And  one  of  the  elders  said  unto  me.  Weep 
not ;  for,  behold,  the  Lion  of  the  tribe  of  Judah, 
and  the  Root  of  David,  hath  prevailed  to  open  the 
book,  and  to  loose  the  seven  seals  thereof  (chap.  v. 
4,5). 

Here  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  'the  lion  of  the 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  IF.,   V.  45 

tribe  of  Juclah,  and  the  root  of  David/  is  first 
brought  upon  the  heavenly  scene.  He  comes  for- 
ward in  appearance  as  a  lamb  that  had  been  slain, 
and  takes  the  book  out  of  the  hands  of  Him  that 
sat  upon  the  throne.  He  breaks  the  stubborn  seals, 
unrols  the  mystic  scroll,  and  shows  the  prophetic 
symbols  that  are  concealed  behind  it  (chap.  v»  6,  7). 

We  have  here,  I  must  say  in  passing,  one  of  the 
most  conclusive  proofs  in  the  Bible  of  the  proper 
divinity  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  No  created 
being  in  heaven,  or  on  earth,  or  anywhere  else, 
could  break  one  of  these  seals,  or  disclose  what 
was  concealed  under  it.  In  other  words,  no  created 
being  in  the  universe  can  look  out  into  the  distant, 
contingent  future,  and  tell  us  what  shall  be  here- 
after. But  Christ  can  do  this  infallibly ;  thus  prov- 
ing His  claim  to  a  proper  divinity. 

And  when  the  Lamb  had  taken  the  book,  '  the 
four  living  creatures,  and  the  four  and  twenty 
elders  fell  down  before  Him,  having  every  one  of 
them  harps,  and  golden  vials  full  of  odours,'  or  in- 
cense, •  which  are  the  prayers  of  saints,' — or  which 
represent  the  prayers  of  saints.  *  And  they  sung 
a  new  song,  saying,  Thou  art  worthy  to  take  the 
book  and  to  open  the  seals  thereof,  for  Thou  wast 
slain,  and  hast  redeemed  us  unto  God  by  Thy  blood, 
out  of  every  kindred,  and  tongue,  and  people,  and 
nation,  and  hast  made  us  kings  and  priests  unto 


46  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

God,  and  we  shall  reign  upon  the  earth '  (chap.  v. 
8-10). 

This  song,  as  I  said  before,  was  sung  by  the 
representatives  of  the  redeemed  Church  in  heaven. 
It  could  be  sung  by  no  one  else.  The  great  choir 
of  angels  stood  silently  by,  while  this  part  of  the 
heavenly  service  was  performed. 

But  when  the  new  song  had  been  sung  by  the 
Tansomed  ones,  a  grand  chorus  was  introduced,  in 
which  saints  and  angels — the  entire  host  of  heaven 
— could  all  unite.  'I  beheld,*  says  John,  'and  I 
heard  the  voice  of  many  angels  round  about  the 
throne,  and  the  living  creatures  and  the  elders,  and 
the  number  of  them  was  ten  thousand  times  ten 
thousand,  and  thousands  of  thousands,  saying,  with 
XI  loud  voice,  Worthy  is  the  Lamb  that  was  slain 
to  receive  power,  and  riches,  and  Avisdom,  and 
strength,  and  honour,  and  glory,  and  blessing.  And 
every  creature  which  is  in  heaven,  and  on  the  earth, 
and  under  the  earth,  and  such  as  are  in  the  sea,  and 
all  that  are  in  them,  heard  I  saying,  Blessing,  and 
honour,  and  gloiy,  and  power  be  unto  Him  that 
sitteth  on  the  throne,  and  unto  the  Lamb,  for  ever 
and  ever.  And  the  four  living  creatm^es  said.  Amen. 
And  the  four  and  twenty  elders  fell  down  and  wor- 
shipped Him  that  liveth  for  ever  and  ever '  (chap. 
V.  11-14). 

We  here  see  with  what  intense  fervour  and  de- 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  IV.,  V.  47 

Yotion  the  Lamb,  tlie  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  is  wor- 
shipped in  heaven.  Would  heavenly  beings  offer 
such  worship — the  same  that  is  offered  to  Him  upon 
the  throne — to  any  other  than  a  Divine  person- 
age ?  Would  they  be  guilty  of  the  idolatry  of  wor- 
shipping, after  this  manner,  a  creature  like  them- 
selves ? 

Before  dismissing  these  two  chapters  (iv.— v.), 
and  entering  on  the  prophetical  part  of  the  Eevela- 
tion,  it  may  be  well  to  notice  a  few  passages  more 
particularly — 

1.  What  are  we  to  understand  by  'the  sea  of 
glass,  like  unto  crystal,'  which  John  saw  before  the 
throne?  (chap.  iv.  6).  Most  commentators  have  sup- 
posed a  reference  here  to  'the  molten  sea'  which 
Solomon  placed  in  the  temple,  intended  for  ablutions 
and  purifications,  which  'was  ten  cubits  from  one 
brim  to  the  other.'  But  I  doubt  the  fact  of  such  a 
reference.  The  scenery  in  this  vision  is  not  that  of 
the  Jewish  temple,  but  rather  that  of  heaven  itself, 
where  was  the  throne  of  God,  and  the  living  crea- 
tures with  the  elders,  and  the  countless  myriads 
of  angelic  worshippers.  I  think  that  what  seemed 
to  the  eye  of  the  Apostle  like  a  sea  of  polished 
crystal,  w^as  rather  the  pavement  round  about  the 
throne,  where  the  worshippers  presented  themselves. 
And  this  accords  with  another  vision  in  this  wonder- 
ful book,  chap,  xv.,  '  I  saw  as  it  were  a  sea  of  glass 


48  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

mingled  -witli  fire ;  and  tliey  that  have  gotten  the 
victory  over  the  beast,  and  over  his  image,  and 
over  his  mark,  and  over  the  number  of  his  name, 
stand  on  the  sea  of  ghiss,  with  the  harps  of  God.' 
They  do  not  bathe  in  the  sea,  or  wash  or  purify 
themselves  in  it.  They  need  no  ablutions  in  heaven. 
But  they  stand  upon  it,  as  upon  a  polished  and 
glittering  pavement. 

2.  Why  is  the  song  of  redeeming  mercy,  sung  by 
the  living  creatures  and  the  elders,  here  called  a  new 
song  ?  (chap.  v.  9).     Because,  in  the  first  place,  it  is 
comparatively  a  new  song  in  heaven.     It  has  not 
been  sung  there  always,  nor  for  a  very  long  period. 
Heaven  had  been  inhabited  by  holy,  happy  crea- 
tures long  ages  before  the  new  song  had  ever  been 
chanted  in  those  blessed  regions.     Bright  angels, 
of  different  orders,  had  lifted  up  their  hearts  and 
voices  in  praise  to  their  Almighty  Creator,  saying, 
'  Thou  art  worthy,  0  Lord,  to  receive  glory  and 
honour,  for  Thou  hast  created  all  things,  and  for 
Thy  pleasure   they  are,  and  they  were   created.' 
But  they  had  never  sung  the  new  song  of  redeem- 
ing mercy.     They  had  no  idea  of  such  a  song,  and 
no  conception  that  it  ever  could  or  would  be  offered 
up.     The  new  song  was  sung  on  earth,  before  it 
was  heard  in  heaven.     It  was  not  till  redeemed 
souls  had  been  gathered  from  the  earth,   and  re- 
ceived up   to   heaven — that   the   living   creatures 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  IV.-V.  49 

and  the  elders  began  to  worship  the  Lamb,  saying, 
'  Thou  art  worthy  to  open  the  book,  and  to  loose 
the  seals  thereof,  for  Thou  wast  slain,  and  hast  re- 
deemed us  unto  God  by  Thy  blood,  out  of  every 
nation,  and  kindred,  and  tongue,  and  people.' 

But  this  song  may  also  be  called  new,  on  ac- 
count of  its  surpassing  interest.  It  is  of  such  a  nature 
that  it  will  always  be  new.  It  can  never  grow  old  ; 
or  (which  is  the  same)  become  uninteresting.  Ke- 
deeming  love  is  of  all  subjects  the  most  interesting 
in  heaven.  Of  course,  redeemed  souls  can  never 
lose  their  interest  in  it ;  while  the  angels  are  scarcely 
less  engrossed  in  it  than  they.  '  Into  which  things 
the  angels  desire  to  look.'  Creative  power,  and 
sovereign  wisdom,  and  preserving  goodness,  may 
lose,  at  length,  something  of  their  freshness  and  in- 
terest ;  but  not  so  redeeming  grace.  This  subject 
will  always  be  new ;  for  the  riches  of  Christ  are 
unsearcliahle ;  and  the  love  displayed  in  redemption 
passeth  hwwledge ;  and  the  celebration  of  it  in  the 
songs  of  the  blessed  will  never  cease. 

3.  Near  the  close  of  the  new  song,  the  ransomed 
ones  are  represented  as  saying:  'Thou  hast  made  us 
unto  our  God  kings  and  priests,  and  ive  shall  reign 
upon  the  earth'  (chap.  v.  10).  What  does  this  imply? 
Are  the  redeemed  in  heaven  to  come  back  to  earth, 
and  literally  reign  here  with  Christ  ?  We  think  not. 
The  whole  scene  presented  in  this  vision  is  symboli- 

G 


50  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

cal.  The  living  creatures  and  the  elders  symbolize 
the  redeemed  Church.  Their  song  implies,  not  that 
they  are  literally  to  descend  to  earth,  and  have 
crowns  and  kingdoms  here,  but  that  God's  Church 
is  yet  to  reign  upon  the  earth.  It  is  to  predominate 
over  all  other  interests.  In  the  v^ords  of  Daniel, 
*  The  kingdom,  and  dominion,  and  greatness  of  the 
kingdom  under  the  whole  heaven,  shall  be  given  to 
the  people  of  the  saints  of  the  Most  High '  (Daniel 
vii.  27). 

4.  The  grand  chorus,  in  which  all  heaven  unites, 
is  represented  as  closing  thus  :  '  And  every  creature 
which  is  in  heaven,  and  on  the  earth,  and  under  the 
earth,  and  such  as  are  in  the  sea,  and  all  that  are  in 
them,  heard  I  saying.  Blessing,  and  honour,  and 
glory,  and  power,  be  unto  Him  that  sitteth  on  the 
throne,  and  unto  the  Lamb,  for  ever  and  ever' 
(chap.  V.  13). 

This  language  has  often  been  quoted,  as  prov- 
ing the  doctrine  of  universal  restoration.  *  However 
long  the  reign  ot  sin  may  be,  the  time  will  come 
when  every  creature  that  is  in  heaven,  or  on  earth, 
or  under  the  earth,  or  anywhere  else,  will  be  brought 
to  Christ,  and  unite  in  singing  praises  to  God  and 
the  Lamb  for  ever.'  It  is  a  sufficient  refutation  of 
this  conceit  to  remember,  that  the  language  here 
used  is  not  prophecy.  It  does  not  belong  to  the  pro- 
phetical part  of  the  Revelation.     That  commences. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  IV.-V,  51 

as  I  have  said,  with  the  opening  of  the  sixth  chap- 
ter. John  is  not  predicting  here  a  universal  resto- 
ration to  be  accomphshed  far  down  in  the  cycles  of 
time,  but  he  is  recording  what  he  actually  saw  and 
heard  at  the  time  of  the  vision.  And  what  did  he 
see  and  hear  ?  He  heard  every  creature  that  was 
then  in  heaven — ^holy  angels  and  the  spirits  of  holy 
men — some  of  whose  bodies  were  still  mouldering 
on  the  earth,  or  under  the  earth,  or  in  the  sea — he 
heard  them  all  singing  with  a  loud  voice,  'Blessings 
and  honour,  and  glory,  and  power,  be  unto  Him 
that  sitteth  on  the  throne,  and  unto  the  Lamb,  for 
ever  and  ever.'  This  is  all  the  Universalism  that  this 
passage  teaches ;  and  it  is,  you  see,  no  Universalism 
at  all.  All  heaven  was  then  occupied,  and  for  ever 
will  be,  in  singing  songs  of  praise  to  God  and  the 
Lamb;  while  the  beast  and  the  false  prophet  are 
left  to  bite  and  gnaw  their  tongues  for  pain,  and 
blaspheme  the  God  of  heaven,  and  still  not  repent 
of  their  evil  deeds. 


52  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 


CHAPTER  Y. 

THE  OPEXIXG  OF  THE  SE-VLS. 
EEVELATION,  CHAP.  VI. 

WE  now  come  to  the  third,  the  prophetical  part 
of  the  Revelation — tliat  relating  to  *  the 
things  which  shall  be  hereafter.' 

In  fixing  the  date  of  this  book,  we  excluded  a 
scheme  of  interpretation  which  refers  most  of  these 
prophecies  to  the  death  of  Nero,  and  the  destruction 
of  Jerusalem.  They  refer,  undoubtedly,  to  leading- 
events  in  the  history  of  God's  Church,  from  the  time 
when  they  were  written,  to  the  end  of  the  world. 
Not  that  they  furnish  a  syllabus,  in  minute  detail, 
of  the  civil  and  ecclesiastical  history  of  the  world ; 
nor  is  it  likely  that,  in  intei-preting  this  book,  we 
are  to  follow  throughout  a  chronological  order. 

Still  there  is  certainly  some  regard  paid  to  chro- 
nology, for  the  book  commences  with  the  early 
conquests  of  the  Gospel,  and  ends  with  its  final 
triumph  in  this  world,  and  its  glorious  consumma- 
tion in  heaven.  But  we  are  not  to  look  for  regular 
chronological  sequences  from  chapter  to  chapter, 
nor  anything  like  it.  The  visions  and  revelations 
are  mostly  scenic,  and  great  occurrences  are  repre- 


IIEVELATION,  CHAPTER  VI.  53 

sented  frequently  in  successive  scenes,  tliat  a  more 
full  and  complete  view  of  tliem  may  be  exhibited. 

Tlie  course  of  the  Gospel  througli  the  ages,  as 
set  forth  in  these  visions,  is  one,  not  of  quiet  pre- 
valence, but  rather  of  long  and  terrible  conflict. 
Earth  and  hell  are  arrayed  against  it,  and  the  con- 
test is  protracted  and  dreadful.  The  Church  is  re- 
presented as  struggling  against  its  mortal  enemies 
— the  dragon,  the  beast,  and  the  false  prophet — and 
is  sometimes,  apparently,  on  the  verge  of  destruc- 
tion. All  the  way,  however,  it  is  sustained  by  the 
ministry  of  angels,  and  by  frequent  manifestations 
of  the  Son  of  God ;  and  in  the  end,  the  conflict 
comes  out  gloriously.  The  mystic  Babylon  is  '  with 
violence  thrown  down,  and  shall  be  found  no  more 
at  all.'  '  The  great  whore,  wliich  did  corrupt  the 
earth  with  her  fornications,'  is  brought  to  judgment, 
and  is  condemned.  The  beasts,  which  had  so  long- 
ravaged  the  Church,  are  destroyed.  The  dragon, 
*  that  old  serpent,  which  is  the  devil  and  Satan,'  is 
caught  and  imprisoned,  to  come  out  no  more  for  a 
long  period.  A  song  of  triumph  goes  up  from  all 
the  host  of  heaven,  saying,  '  Alleluia !  Salvation, 
and  glory,  and  honour,  and  power,  be  unto  the  Lord 
our  God  ;  for  true  and  righteous  are  His  judgments  !' 

Such  is,  in  brief,  the  plan  of  the  Apocalypse ; 
and  the  object  of  it — of  Christ  in  revealing  it,  and 
of  John  in  writing  it — is  very  obvious.     It  was  to 


54  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAiyED: 

instruct  and  warn  tlie  people  of  God.  It  was  to 
strengthen  and  comfort  tliem  during  their  long 
conflict  with  earth  and  hell,  setting  before  them 
its  glorious  termination,  and  the  certainty  of  their 
final  security  and  triumph.  And  who  can  tell  how 
much  the  suffering  children  of  God  have  been  sup- 
ported and  comforted  in  view  of  these  things? 
Confined  in  dark  dungeons,  and  tortured  in  every 
form  that  a  hellish  ingenuity  could  invent ;  chained 
to  the  bm-ning  pile,  or  torn  by  savage  beasts,  or 
thrown  fi:om  the  tops  of  rocks,  or  drowned  in  the 
sea ;  who  can  tell  how  much  they  have  been  com- 
forted by  reflecting  on  the  glowing  visions  of  this 
wonderful  book  ?  It  was  here  that  they  gathered 
arms  for  the  deadly  fight,  and  strength  to  triumph 
over  their  last  enemy. 

The  revelations  of  the  Apocalypse  are  imparted 
chiefly  by  means  of  symhols.  And  what  are  sym- 
bols ?  They  are  not  the  same  as  types,  or  figm-es  of 
speech;  but  are  rather  the  setting  forth  of  moral 
ideas  by  pictm-es  or  natural  objects.  Thus,  a  cncle 
is  a  symbol  of  eternity,  having  neither  beginning 
nor  end;  an  eye  is  a  symbol  of  wisdom;  a  lion  of 
courage ;  a  lamb  of  meekness  and  gentleness ;  and 
a  dove  of  innocence.  Not  a  few  of  the  symbols 
employed  in  the  Revelation  are  interpreted  either 
by  the  speaker  or  writer.  Thus  it  is  said  in  the 
first  chapter:  'The  seven  stars  are  the  angels  of 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  VL  55 

the  seven  Clmrches,  and  the  seven  candlesticks 
are  the  seven  Churches.'  And  in  the  seventeenth 
chapter :  '  The  seven  heads  are  seven  mountains  on 
which  the  woman  sitteth;'  and  'the  ten  horns  are 
ten  kings,'  or  kingdoms.  So,  in  Daniel,  '  The  ram 
which  thou  sawest,  having  two  horns,  are  the  kings 
of  Media  and  Persia ;  and  the  rough  he-goat  is  the 
king  of  Grecia'  (Dan.  viii.  20.)  And  where  the 
symbol  is  not  explained,  it  is  not  usually  of  difficult 
interpretation.  The  nature  of  it  will  suggest  its 
import,  with  at  least  sufficient  clearness  to  answer 
the  purpose  of  the  writer.  The  design  of  prophecy 
does  not  require  that  there  should  be  an  explicit 
statement  of  what  is  to  take  place,  with  a  detail  of 
names,  dates,  and  circumstances ;  but  only  such  a 
statement  as  will  show  that  some  future  event  was 
intended,  and  will  so  far  indicate  or  describe  the 
event,  that  when  it  comes  to  pass,  it  may  be  seen 
that  it  really  was  the  event  referred  to.  It  is  no 
part  of  the  object  of  the  prophetic  Scriptures  to 
enable  interpreters  to  prophesy,  but  rather  to  con- 
firm their  faith,  and  that  of  the  whole  Church,  when 
the  event  shall  actually  have  occurred.  And  this 
may  be  done  by  appropriate  symbols,  as  well  as  in 
any  other  way. 

It  should  be  added,  however,  that  peculiar  care 
is  necessary  in  the  interpretation  of  symbols,  lest 
the  imagination  get  the  better  of  sober  judgment, 


66  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

and  men  retail, — as  they  often  have  done, — their 
own  fancies  in  place  of  the  truth  of  God. 

But  without  further  introduction,  let  us  attempt 
the  interpretation  of  some  of  the  symbols  in  the 
chapter  before  us. 

'And  I  saw,  when  the  Lamb  opened  one  of  the 
seals ;  and  I  heard,  as  it  were  the  noise  of  thunder, 
one  of  the  four  living  creatures  saying,  Come  and 
see.  And  I  saw,  and  behold  a  white  horse ;  and  he 
that  sat  on  him  had  a  bow ;  and  a  crown  was  given 
unto  him:  and  he  went  forth  conquering,  and  to 
conquer '  (Rev.  vi.  1,  2). 

The  symbol  here  employed — a  man,  a  conqueror, 
on  a  white  horse — is  interpreted  in  another  part  of 
the  Revelation,  *  I  saw  heaven  opened,  and  behold 
a  white  horse ;  and  He  that  sat  on  him  was  called 
Faithful  and  True ;  and  in  righteousness  He  doth 
judge  and  make  war.  His  eyes  were  as  a  flame  of 
fire,  and  on  His  head  were  many  crowns ;  .  .  .  and 
He  was  clothed  with  a  vesture  dipped  in  blood: 
and  His  name  is  called  the  Word  (Logos)  of  God,' 
Rev.  xix.  11—13.  The  symbol  is  the  same  as  that 
in  the  chapter  before  us, — a  triumphant  conqueror 
on  a  white  horse ;  and  here  we  have  His  name  in 
full — the  Logos  of  God — the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  It 
is  Christ,  therefore,  who  is  here  presented  as  'going 
forth  from  conquering  to  conquer.* 

The  event  predicted  is,  undoubtedly,  the  rapid 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  VI.  57 

triumphs  of  the  Gospel  in  the  second  and  third 
centuries,  immediately  following  the  opening  of  the 
First  Seal.  In  the  first  century,  the  Gospel  spread 
into  remote  and  distant  places  in  every  direction ; 
still,  it  did  not  reach  the  people  generally.  *It 
touched  and  glanced  on  every  land,'  but  the  inter- 
stices were  not  filled  up ;  many  places  were  left  in 
darkness.  In  the  next  two  centuries,  this  destitu- 
tion was  in  a  great  measure  remedied.  The  religion 
of  Christ  not  only  spread  into  regions  before  un- 
occupied, but  it  more  deeply  penetrated  countries 
where  it  had  ah^eady  found  its  way.  From  the 
remotest  east  to  the  remotest  west,  and  from  the 
northern  extremities  of  the  Roman  empire,  and  be- 
yond them,  far  down  into  Ethiopia  and  Africa,  we 
shall  scarcely  find  a  country  in  which  the  religion 
of  Christ  was  not  professed — Persia,  Hither  India, 
Mesopotamia,  Armenia,  Arabia,  Asia  Minor,  Greece, 
Italy,  Germany,  Spain,  Gaul,  Britain,  Egypt,  and 
Northern  Africa.  Some  of  these  countries  were 
spread  over  with  Churches  and  full  of  Christians ; 
while  in  others,  missionaries,  private  individuals, 
merchants,  travellers,  and  in  some  instances  cap- 
tives, and  even  captive  females,  were  busily  at 
w^ork,  telling  the  story  of  a  Saviour's  death,  and 
endeavouring  to  lead  poor,  blinded,  groping,  ruined 
sinners,  into  the  way  of  life.    It  was  impossible  that 

Christianity,  thus  recommended  and  enforced,  should 

II 


58  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

not  prevail ;  and  it  did  prevail.  It  tnumplied  over 
existing  idolatries  and  superstitions,  and  soon 
reached  a  prodigious  diffusion. 

It  was  this  fact  which  emboldened  Tertullian  to 
say,  in  his  Apology :  '  We  are  a  people  of  yester- 
day ;  and  yet  we  have  filled  every  place  belonging 
to  you, — your  cities,  islands,  castles,  towns,  assem- 
blies, your  very  camp,  your  tribes,  your  companies, 
the  palace,  the  forum,  and  the  senate,  leaving  you 
nothing  but  your  temples.  You  can  count  your 
armies,  but  our  numbers,  in  some  single  provinces, 
are  greater  than  they.' 

Justin  Martyr  uses  a  similar  language  :  '  There 
is  no  people,  Greek  or  barbarian,  or  of  any  other 
race,  by  whatsoever  appellation  or  manners  they 
may  be  distinguished,  however  ignorant  of  arts  or 
agriculture,  whether  they  dwell  in  tents,  or  wander 
about  in  covered  waggons,  among  whom  prayers 
and  thanksgivings  are  not  offered  in  the  name  of 
the  crucified  Jesus,  to  the  Father  and  Creator  of  all 
things.' 

We  have  evidence  that  these  statements  are  not 
exaggerations,  from  events  which  took  place  in 
the  times  of  which  we  speak.  During  the  reign  of 
Trajan,  the  younger  Pliny  was  governor  of  Bythinia ; 
and  so  great  was  the  number  of  Christians  brought 
before  him  for  trial  and  punishment,  that  he  knew 
not  what  to  do  with  them,  and  wrote  to  the  em- 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  VI.  59 

peror  for  advice.  He  had  put  many  to  death,  on 
a  profession  of  their  faith ;  but  the  more  accusers 
were  encouraged,  the  more  the  victims  were  multi- 
pHed,  until  the  numbers  brought  up  for  trial  quite 
appalled  him.  To  his  request  for  instructions,  the 
emperor  replied :  '  The  Christians  must  not  be 
sought  after,  nor  must  anonymous  accusers  be  re- 
ceived. If  any  confess  themselves  to  be  Christians, 
and  persist  in  it,  let  them  be  punished ;  but  if  any 
renounce  their  profession,  and  evince  their  sincerity 
by  offering  supplication  to  our  gods,  let  them  be 
pardoned.' 

The  same  thing  was  acted  over  in  the  time  of 
Adrian,  when  the  proconsul  of  Asia  wrote  to  him 
for  advice.  The  priests  stirred  up  the  people  at 
the  public  shows  and  games,  to  demand,  with  united 
voice,  the  destruction  of  the  Christians ;  and  these 
public  clamours  could  not  be  safely  disregarded. 
Whereupon  the  proconsul  wrote  to  Adrian,  that  it 
seemed  to  him  inhuman  and  unjust  to  immolate 
such  multitudes  of  men  and  women,  who  had  been 
convicted  of  no  crime,  just  to  gratify  a  furious  mob. 
To  this  the  emperor  replied,  as  Trajan  had  done 
before  him  :  '  The  Christians  shall  not  be  disturbed 
without  cause,  nor  shall  sycophants  be  encouraged 
in  their  odious  practices.  If  accusers  will  appear 
openly,  and  make  charges  against  them,  so  as  to 
give  them  an  opportunity  of  answering  for  them- 


60  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

selves,  let  them  proceed  in  tliat  manner,  but  not  by 
rude  demands  and  popular  clamours.' 

Facts  such  as  these  are  more  convincing  than 
any  private  testimony  as  to  the  multitude  of  Chris- 
tians at  this  time  in  the  Roman  provinces,  and  as 
to  the  general  diffusion  and  triumph  of  the  Gospel. 
They  show  that  the  great  Redeemer  had  been  ri ding- 
forth  from  conquering  to  conquer,  and  had  thus  fully 
accomplished  the  prophetic  import  of  the  first  seal 
which  He  had  opened. 

We  come,  then,  to  the  Second  Seal. 

*  And  when  He  had  opened  the  second  seal,  I 
heard  the  second  living  creatm-e  say,  Come  and  see. 
And  there  went  out  another  horse  that  was  red; 
and  power  was  given  to  him  that  sat  thereon  to 
take  peace  from  the  earth,  and  that  they  should 
kill  one  another:  and  there  was  given  unto  him 
a  great  sword '  (Rev.  vi.  3,  4). 

The  symbol  here  presented  is  obviously  one  of 
destruction  by  war.  The  horse  is  blood-red,  and  to 
him  who  sat  on  it  was  power  given  to  take  peace 
from  the  earth.  A  great  sword  was  put  into  his 
hand,  and  those  who  before  had  been  united  in  per- 
secuting the  people  of  God,  were  now  to  Idll  and 
destroy  one  another. 

Such  is  the  symbol :  and  we  iind  its  fulfilment 
near  at  hand.  The  reigns  of  Trajan  and  Adrian 
"were   both   signalised  by   a   mutual    and    terrible 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  VI .  61 

destruction  of  Jews  and  Eomans — the  first  and 
greatest  enemies  of  the  Christians.  Near  the  end 
of  the  reign  of  Trajan,  the  Jews  in  Egypt  and 
Cyprus  rebelled  against  the  Koman  government, 
and  are  reported  to  have  put  to  death,  with  every 
mark  of  cruelty,  four  hundred  and  sixty  thousand 
of  their  enemies.  The  Jews  were  speedily  subdued 
by  the  Romans,  and  vast  multitudes  of  them  were 
slain.  Eusebius,  speaking  of  the  rebellion,  says : 
*  While  the  doctrine  and  Church  of  our  Lord  daily 
increased,  the  calamities  of  the  Jews  were  aggra- 
vated by  new  miseries.'-^ 

Shortly  after  this,  in  the  reign  of  Adrian,  the 
Jews  were  led  into  a  new  rebellion  by  one  who 
pretended  to  be  the  Messiah.  He  was  called  Bar- 
chochebas,  or  Son  of  the  Star ;  because  he  pretended 
to  be  the  star  foretold  by  Balaam  (Num.  xxiv.  17). 
The  whole  Jewish  nation  rose  in  arms  against  the 
Roman  government,  and  murdered  all  who  fell  into 
their  hands.  But  the  rebellion,  as  before,  was  put 
down,  and  a  terrible  retribution  was  visited  upon 
the  Jews.  They  lost  a  thousand  cities  and  for- 
tresses, and  580,000  of  their  people  perished.  Adrian 
destroyed  Jerusalem  a  second  time,  and  built  a  new 
city  in  place  of  it,  into  which  no  Jew  was  permitted 
to  enter. 

Thus  the  original  persecutors  of  the  Christians, 
^  Ecc.  Hist.,  Book  iv.  chap.  2. 


62  THE  APOCAL YPSE  EXPLAINED  : 

according  to  the  prediction,  '  killed  and  destroyed 
one  another.^  The  Romans,  by  their  idolatries  and 
cruelties,  provoked  the  Jewish  nation  to  rebellion ; 
and,  by  following  a  false  Messiah  instead  of  the 
true,  the  Jews  were  brought  to  desolation.  Thus, 
obviously  and  almost  literally,  were  the  indications 
of  the  second  seal  accomplished. 

The  Thu:d  Seal. 

*And  when  he  had  opened  the  third  seal,  I 
heard  the  third  living  creature  say,  Come  and 
see.  And  I  beheld,  and  lo  a  black  horse;  and 
he  that  sat  on  him  had  a  pair  of  balances  in  his 
hand.  And  I  heard  a  voice  in  the  midst  of  the 
four  living  creatures  say,  A  measure  of  wheat  for 
a  penny,  and  three  measures  of  barley  for  a  penny ; 
and  see  thou  hurt  not  the  oil  and  the  w^ine  *  (Rev. 
vi.  5,  6). 

The  measure  here  spoken  of  was  a  chocnix^ — an 
Attic  measm-e,  about  equal  to  our  quart.  The  penny 
was  a  denarius — the  price  of  a  day's  labour — worth 
nearly  fourteen  cents.  According  to  this,  a  day's 
labour  would  purchase  only  a  quart  of  wheat,  or 
three  quarts  of  barley,  indicating  a  great  scarcity  of 
bread.  The  injunction,  too,  to  take  care  of  the  oil 
and  the  wine,  the  olives  and  vineyards,  indicates  a 
coming  scarcity  of  these  productions.  In  short,  the 
entire  symbol, — the  black  horse,  the  price  of  pro- 
visions, the  man  with  his  balances  to  weigh  them 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER,  VI.  63 

out, — all  wear  a  sombre  aspect,  and  indicate  a  dis- 
tressing scarcity  of  tlie  necessaries  of  life. 

Such  is  the  symbol  here  presented ;  and  when 
we  look  into  tlie  Eoman  history,  we  find  it  sig- 
nally accomplished.  A  distressing  scarcity  pre- 
vailed in  Italy  and  Kome  during  the  reigns  of  the 
Antonines  and  their  successors,  to  the  time  of 
Severus, — a  period  of  nearly  fifty  years.  Ter- 
tuUian,  who  lived  in  these  times,  speaks  of  deluging 
rains  and  ruined  harvests,  bringing  the  utmost  dis- 
tress upon  the  people ;  which  things  he  interprets 
as  judgments  upon  them  for  persecuting  the  Chris- 
tians. 

In  the  reign  of  Antonmus  Pius,  Aurelius  Victor 
says,  that  there  was  such  a  scarcity  of  provisions 
at  Kome  as  to  cause  a  tumult,  in  which  the  people 
were  ready  to  stone  the  emperor.  Julius  Capito- 
linus  speaks  of  the  same  thing,  and  adds :  '  The 
emperor  Avas  fain  to  supply  the  scarcity  of  corn, 
wine,  and  oil,  out  of  his  own  treasury.' 

In  the  reign  of  his  successor,  Marcus  Antoninus, 
we  have  a  like  account  of  scarcity,  amounting  almost 
to  famine.  Mr  Echard^  tells  of  the  rise  of  the  river 
Tiber,  till  it  amounted  to  an  ininidation,  overwhelm- 
ing a  considerable  part  of  Kome.  The  flood  bore 
along  with  it  a  multitude  of  people  and  of  cattle, 
desolated  the  country,  and  caused  a  famine.     This 

^  Roman  History. 


64  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

disaster  was  followed  by  eartliqiiakes,  the  burning 
of  cities,  and  an  infinite  number  of  ravenous  insects, 
which  darkened  the  air,  and  wasted  what  the  floods 
had  left. 

In  the  next  reign — that  of  Comraodus — Dio 
tells  us  that  '  there  was  such  a  scarcity  of  provi- 
sions, that  the  people  rose  and  killed  Oleander,  the 
emperor's  favouiite.'  This  scarcity  continued  and 
increased  during  the  wars  and  revolutions  which 
followed,  until  the  time  of  Severus.  He  made  it 
one  great  object  of  his  reign  to  remedy  this  stand- 
ing evil,  and  provide  against  it  in  the  future. 

This  protracted  scarcity,  of  more  than  fifty  years, 
was  a  striking  fulfilment  of  the  I'evclations  of  the 
third  seal. 

The  Fourth  Seal. 

*And  when  he  had  opened  the  fourth  seal,  I 
heard  the  voice  of  the  fourth  living  creature  say. 
Come  and  see.  And  I  looked,  and  behold  a  pale 
horse ;  and  his  name  that  sat  on  him  was  Death,  and 
Hell  followed  with  him :  and  power  was  given  imto 
them  over  the  fourth  part  of  the  earth,  to  kill  with 
sword,  and  with  hunger,  and  with  death,  and  with 
the  beasts  of  the  earth '  (Rev.  vi.  7,  8). 

The  import  of  tliis  frightful  symbol  can  hardly 
be  mistaken.  Here  was  a  *  pale  horse,'  Avith  the 
image  of  Death  seated  upon  him.  Pale  is  a  usual 
epithet  of  death — palUdam  mortem,  say  the  poets. 


IlEVELATION,  CHAPTER  VI.  65 

And  Hell  (hades)  followed  witli  it.  Hades,  in  the 
Bible,  signifies  either  the  grave,  or  the  place  of 
future  punishment  of  the  wicked.  It  is  never  used 
in  the  Scriptures  to  signify  the  abode  of  the  holy 
dead.  It  is  the  wicked,  not  the  righteous,  who  are 
to  be  turned  into  sheol  (Jiades)  (Ps.  ix.  17).  '  And 
power  was  given  unto  them  (death  and  hades)  over 
the  fourth  part  of  the  earth' — the  Roman  earth — 
*to  kill  with  the  sword,  with  hunger,  and  with 
death,'  i.e.^  with  pestilence,  which  is  often  used  in 
Scripture  as  the  synonym  of  death — '  and  with  the 
beasts  of  the  earth.'  In  the  Hebrew  prophets  these 
are  styled  God's  sore  judgments.  '  For  thus  saith 
the  Lord ;  How  much  more  when  I  send  my  four 
sar^e  judgments  upon  Jerusalem,  the  sword,  and  the 
famine,  and  the  noisome  beast,  and  the  pestilence, 
to  cut  off  from  it  man  and  beast?'  (Ezek.  xiv.  21). 
The  whole  representation  here  is  one  of  destruction 
and  death,  coming,  not  merely  (as  in  the  preceding- 
seals)  by  famine  and  war,  but  also  by  pestilence, 
and  the  beasts  of  the  earth.  We  shall  see  how  the 
prediction  was  fulfilled. 

Septimius  Severus  was  on  the  throne  at  the  com- 
mencement of  the  third  century,  and  reigned  till  the 
year  211.  During  the  next  sixty  years,  the  empire 
was  in  continual  revolution  and  convulsion.  There 
were  not  less  than  sixty  aspirants  to  the  throne, 

and  more  than  twenty  actually  mounted  it, — several 

I 


66  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

of  whom,  as  Caracalla,  Macriniis,  Heliogabalus,  and 
Maximin,  were  among  the  vilest  of  mankind.  These 
intestine  divisions  gave  courage  to  the  enemies  of 
Kome,  particularly  to  the  Persians  and  the  northern 
barbarians,  for  it  was  at  this  period  that  we  first 
hear  of  the  Goths,  as  breaking  into  the  dominions 
of  Rome.  Valerian  too,  a  persecutor  of  the  Christians, 
was  taken  prisoner  by  Sapor,  king  of  Persia,  and 
treated  by  him  with  great  cruelty  till  his  death. 

Scarcity  of  provisions  and  famine,  the  usual  effect 
of  wars,  and  more  especially  civil  wars,  prevailed 
to  an  alarming  extent.  These  things  are  mentioned 
by  Dionysius  of  Alexandria,  and  by  Cyprian,  bishop 
of  Carthage.  '  After  these  things,'  says  Dionysius, 
speaking  of  the  Decian  persecution,  *  wars  and  fa- 
mine came  upon  us.'  Cyprian,  in  his  *  Apology  for 
the  Christians,'  takes  notice  of  the  perpetual  wars 
and  famines  of  these  times.  These  things  were 
charged,  as  usual,  upon  the  Cluistians.  *  The  gods 
are  angry,'  cried  the  priests,  '  because  their  altars 
are  forsaken ;  therefore  has  this  distress  come  upon 
us.'  Cyprian  insists,  on  the  contrary,  that  these 
great  calamities,  which  had  been  before  predicted, 
came  upon  the  world,  not  because  the  Christians 
rejected  the  idolatrous  Roman  worship,  but  because 
the  Romans  rejected  the  worship  of  the  true  God, 
and  persecuted  His  people. 

The  pecuHar  judgment  indicated  m  the  predic- 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  VI .  67 

tion  before  US,  \q  pestilence, — the  "usual  concomitant  of 
famine  and  war.  And  this  is  specially  mentioned 
by  ancient  historians.  *  In  the  reigns  of  Gallus  and 
Yolusian,'  says  Zonoras,  '•  a  plague  infested  the  pro- 
vinces. Beginning  in  Ethiopia,  it  spread  itself 
through  the  whole  east  and  west,  destroyed  the 
inhabitants  of  many  cities,  and  continued  for  fifteen 
years.'  Zosimus  takes  notice  of  the  same  calamity. 
*  While  war  raged  in  every  part,  a  pestilence  spread 
through  the  towns  and  villages,  destroying  the 
remnant  of  mankind.  So  great  a  destruction  had 
never  before  happened.'  Eutropius  also  says,  '  that 
the  reigns  of  Gallus  and  Volusian  were  only  me- 
morable for  pestilence  and  grievous  distempers.' 

Of  this  unparallelled  pestilence,  Gibbon  gives  the 
following  account:  'Famine  is  almost  always  fol- 
lowed by  epidemical  diseases,  the  effect  of  scanty 
and  unwholesome  food.  Other  causes  must,  how- 
ever, have  contributed  to  the  furious  plague  which, 
from  the  year  250  to  the  year  265,  raged  without  in- 
terruption in  every  province,  every  city,  and  almost 
every  family  in  the  Roman  empire.  During  a  part 
of  this  time  five  thousand  persons  died  daily  at 
Rome ;  and  many  towns  that  had  escaped  the  hands 
of  the  barbarians  were  entirely  depopulated.'  -^ 

Of  the  ravages  of  wild  beasts  during  this  melan- 
choly period  particular  mention  is  made  by  Arno- 
*  DecKne  and  Fall,  vol.  i.  p.  150. 


68  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

bius.  Within  a  year  after  tlie  death  of  Galliennff, 
they  made  their  appearance  in  many  provinces,  and, 
like  other  evils,  were  charged  npon  the  Christians, 
because  they  had  roused  the  anger  of  the  gods. 
Arnobius  defends  the  Christians  against  this  charge, 
by  showing  that  ravenous  beasts  had  prevailed 
in  the  previous  ages,  long  before  the  date  of 
Christianity.^ 

In  the  prediction  before  us,  power  was  given  to 
these  several  plagues  over  the  fourth  part  of  the 
Roman  earth.  Whether  they  actually  prevailed  to 
this  extent,  it  is  impossible  to  say.  Mr  Gibbon 
makes  the  proportion  of  those  destroyed  much 
greater  than  this.  He  goes  into  a  calculation  to 
show  that,  by  the  calamities  which  have  been  men- 
tioned, not  less  than  half  of  the  inhabitants  of  the 
vast  empii'o  of  Rome  perished, — enough  surely  to 
answer  to  the  symbol  of  *  Death  upon  the  Pale 
Horse.' 

The  Fifth  Seal. 

*  And  when  he  had  opened  the  fifth  seal,  I  saw 
under  the  altar  the  souls  of  them  that  were  slain  for 
the  word  of  God,  and  for  the  testimony  which  they 
held :  and  they  cried  with  a  loud  voice,  saying,  How 
long,  0  Lord,  holy  and  true,  dost  thou  not  judge 
and  avenge  our  blood  on  them  that  dwell  on  the 
earth?     And  white  robes  were  given  unto  every 

*  Disp.  Adv.  Gentes  Libri,  i.  p.  5. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  VI.  6> 

one  of  them ;  and  it  was  said  unto  tliem,  that  they 
should  rest  yet  for  a  little  season,  until  their  fellow- 
servants  also  and  their  brethren,  that  should  be 
killed  as  they  were,  should  be  fulfilled'  (Rev.  vi. 
9-11). 

There  is  some  change  of  scene  presented  in  this 
symbol.  Previously  there  had  been  a  throne,  and 
He  that  sat  upon  it,  surrounded  by  the  elders  and 
the  living  creatures.  But  now  there  is  a  vision  of 
the  temple  in  heaven,  with  its  altars  and  other  appur- 
tenances. And  this  change  may  account  for  it,  that 
John  no  longer  hears  a  voice  from  the  living  crea- 
tures, inviting  him  to  come  and  see.  At  the  foot  of 
one  of  the  altars^ — the  place  of  prayer — John  saw 
the  souls  of  the  meirtyrs,  '  who  had  been  slain  for  the 
word  of  God,  and  for  the  testimony  which  they 
held ; '  and  they  were  engaged  in  supplication : 
*  How  long,  0  Lord,  holy  and  true,  dost  thou  not 
judge  and  avenge  our  blood  on  them  that  dwell 
on  the  earth  ? ' 

This  does  not  imply  that  the  martyrs  in  heaven 
have  any  malice  towards  their  former  persecutors ; 
but  they  implore  that  the  terrible  scenes  of  tor- 
ture and  slaughter  on  the  earth  may  cease,  and 
that  God  would  magnify  His  glorious  justice,  in 

>  There  were  two  altars  in  the  temple, — the  altar  of  burnt  offerings, 
where  was  presented  the  morning  and  evening  sacrifice  ;  and  the  altar 
of  incense.    It  is  likely  that  the  altar  of  incense  is  here  referred  to. 


70  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

visiting  upon  the  infamous  destroyers  of  His 
people  that  pnnisliment  which  they  deserve.  They 
implore  that  this  may  be  done  speedily.  The  an- 
swer to  their  prayer  is,  that  they  must  forbear  a 
little  season.  Others  are  waitmg  for  the  crown  of 
martyrdom,  and  their  destinies  must  be  fulfilled. 
Meanwhile,  the  suppliants  are  invested  with  pecu- 
liar honours.  White  robes  are  given  to  every  one 
of  them ;  denoting  that  they  are  in  the  number  of 
those  *w^ho  have  washed  their  robes,  and  made 
them  white  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb.' 

The  import  of  tliis  instructive  symbol  cannot 
be  mistaken.  It  refers  to  the  persecutions  of  the 
third  and  fourth  centuries,  and  more  especially  to 
the  last  and  most  temble  of  them — that  under 
Diocletian. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  fourth  century,  the 
vast  empire  of  Rome  w^as  governed  by  four  rulers, 
viz.,  Diocletian  and  Maximian,  with  the  title  of 
Augustus  ;  and  Galerius  and  Constantius,  with  the 
title  of  Caesar.  The  state  of  the  Church  was  peace- 
ful and  happy.  Christians  were  regarded  'svith 
favour,  and  admitted  to  the  most  important  civil 
offices ;  spacious  buildings  were  erected  for  public 
worship,  to  which  the  people  resorted  wdthout  fear ; 
and  they  had  little  more  to  hope  for,  unless  it  were 
that  one  or  more  of  the  emperors  should  embrace 
their  religion.      Under  these    circumstances,    the 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  VI.  71 

pagan  priests  and  populace  began  to  be  alarmed, 
lest  the  power  wbicli  they  had  so  long  wielded 
should  pass  out  of  their  hands.  They  first  began 
to  work  upon  the  fears  and  prejudices  of  Diocletian, 
— who  was  an  old  man,  and  whom  they  knew  to 
be  both  timid  and  credulous, — to  induce  him  to 
persecute  the  Christians.  But  failing  here,  they 
next  tried  their  arts  upon  Galerius,  who  was  son-in- 
law  to  Diocletian ;  and  with  him  they  were  more 
successful.  He,  being  a  cruel  and  fanatical  pagan, 
persuaded  Diocletian  to  publish  an  edict,  requiring 
that  the  temples  of  the  Christians  should  be  demo- 
lished, their  sacred  books  burned,  and  they  deprived 
of  all  civil  rights  and  honours.  This  decree  did 
not  aim  directly  at  the  lives  of  the  Christians ;  and 
yet  many,  because  they  refused  to  give  up  their 
sacred  books,  were  put  to  death. 

Not  long  after  the  publication  of  this  first  edict, 
there  were  two  conflagrations  in  the  palace  at 
Nicomedia,  which  were  charged  upon  the  Christians, 
and  many  of  them  were,  by  an  imperial  edict,  put 
to  the  torture,  with  a  view  to  extort  confessions. 
Nearly  at  the  same  time  there  were  insurrections  in 
Armenia  and  Syria,  which  provoked  the  emperor  to 
pass  a  third  edict,  committing  all  Christian  bishops 
and  ministers  to  prison,  that,  by  tortures  and  punish- 
ments they  might  be  compelled  to  offer  sacrifice  to 
the  gods.    In  consequence  of  this  order,  the  prisons. 


72  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

destined  for  the  vilest  criminals,  were  soon  filled 
with  bishops,  presbyters,  deacons,  and  other  Church 
officers,  many  of  whom  were  put  to  death,  while 
others  were  exiled,  or  banished  to  the  mines. 

But  the  malice  of  Galerius  was  not  yet  satisfied. 
In  the  following  year  he  induced  Diocletian  to  pass 
his  fourth  and  final  edict,  compelling  all  Christians 
to  offer  sacrifice  to  the  gods  under  penalty  of  death. 

The  malice  of  the  persecutors  could  go  no  fur- 
ther, and  the  condition  of  the  Church,  more  espe- 
cially in  the  eastern  provinces,  seemed  to  be  hopeless. 
And  what  rendered  it  more  so  was,  that  Galerius, 
just  at  this  time,  succeeded  in  deposing  Diocletian 
and  Maximian,  and  thus  became  sole  emperor  of 
the  East.  His  avowed  purpose  was  to  put  an  end 
to  the  Cliristian  religion ;  and  he  set  himself  about 
it  with  the  ferocity  and  ingenuity  of  a  fiend. 

It  was  not  death  which  the  Christians  di'eaded 
so  much  as  the  various  and  terrible  tortures  by 
which  it  was  preceded.  ]\Ir  Gibbon  says :  *  It 
would  be  easy  to  fill  many  pages  with  disgustful 
accounts  of  racks  and  scoui'ges,  of  iron  hooks  and 
red-hot  beds,  and  of  other  torments,  which  fire  and 
steel,  and  savage  beasts,  and  more  savage  men, 
could  inflict  on  the  human  body.'  Milner  says : 
'  The  prisons  were  full,  and  unheard  of  tortures 
were  invented.  Some  were  split  down  by  axes; 
some  were  mutilated  and  cut  in  pieces ;  some  had 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  VI.  73 

molten  lead  poured  into  tlieir  bodies ;  some  were 
sawn  asunder ;  while  others  were  suspended,  with 
the  head  downward,  over  a  slow  fire,  till  they  were 
suffocated  and  consumed.' 

I  might  pursue  these  hideous  details  to  almost 
any  length,  but  I  need  not.  No  wonder  the  souls 
of  the  martyrs,  under  the  heavenly  altar,  were 
constrained  to  cry  out,  'How  long?'  and  to  in- 
voke the  seemingly  tardy  justice  of  the  Almighty 
to  put  a  stop  to  such  abominable  deeds.  Thus 
terribly  were  the  portents  of  the  fifth  seal  accom- 
plished. 

The  Sixth  Seal. 

'And  I  beheld  when  He  had  opened  the  sixth 
seal,  and,  lo,  there  was  a  great  earthquake ;  and  the 
sun  became  black  as  sackcloth  of  hair,  and  the  moon 
became  as  blood ;  and  the  stars  of  heaven  fell  unto 
the  earth,  even  as  a  fig-tree  casteth  her  untimely 
figs,  when  she  is  shaken  of  a  mighty  wind.  And 
the  heaven  departed  as  a  scroll  when  it  is  rolled 
together;  and  every  mountain  and  island  were 
moved  out  of  their  places.  And  the  kings  of  the 
earth,  and  the  great  men,  and  the  rich  men,  and  the 
chief  captains,  and  the  mighty  men,  and  every  bond- 
man, and  every  free  man,  hid  themselves  in  the  dens 
and  in  the  rocks  of  the  mountains  ;  and  said  to  the 
mountains  and  rocks,  Fall  on  us,  and  hide  us  from 
the  face  of  Him  that  sitteth  on  the  throne,  and  from 

K 


74  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

the  wrath  of  the  Lamb :  for  the  great  day  of  His 
wrath  is  come,  and  who  shall  be  able  to  stand?' 
(Rev.  vi.  12-17). 

The  events  here  described  were  all  seen  in  pano- 
ramic vision.  They  were  pictured  on  that  roll  of  a 
book  which  the  Lamb  took  out  of  the  hand  of  Him 
that  sat  upon  the  throne,  and  were  exhibited,  as 
they  could  be,  upon  the  breaking  of  the  sixth  seal. 
They  are  all  of  them  symbolical ;  nor  are  the  sym- 
bols of  difficult  interpretation.  The  earthquake 
denotes  a  great  shaking  of  the  religious  and  politi- 
cal earth — a  mighty  change — a  stupendous  revolu- 
tion. The  darkening  of  the  sun  and  moon,  and  the 
falling  of  the  stars,  set  forth  the  overturning  of 
thrones,  and  the  dowTifall  of  rulers  and  dignitaries. 
The  departure  of  the  visible  heavens,  like  the  rolling 
up  of  a  scroll  of  parchment,  and  the  moving  of  the 
mountains  and  islands  out  of  their  places,  are  all  a 
part  of  the  same  mighty  change.  The  luminaries 
which  had  before  studded  the  political  heavens  are 
no  longer  there.  They  are  rolled  together,  and  put 
out  of  sight,  and  potentates  and  poAvers,  which  had 
seemed  like  the  fastnesses  of  the  earth,  have  passed 
away. 

The  phraseology  here  used  may  seem  strange  to 
modern  ears,  but  it  is  in  strict  accordance  with  the  pro- 
phetic language  of  the  Old  Testament.  Thus  Isaiah, 
predicting   the   downfall   of  idolatrous   kingdoms, 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  VL  75 

says :  *  The  stars  of  heaven  and  the  constellations 
thereof  shall  not  give  their  light :  the  sun  shall  be 
darkened  in  his  going  forth,  and  the  moon  shall  not 
cause  her  light  to  shine.  And  I  will  punish  the 
world  for  their  evil,  and  the  wicked  for  their  ini- 
quity '  (Isa.  xiii.  10).  *  The  host  of  heaven  shall  be 
dissolved,  and  the  heavens  shall  be  rolled  together 
as  a  scroll :  and  all  their  host  shall  fall  down,  as 
the  leaf  falleth  from  off  the  vine,  and  as  a  falling 
fig  from  the  fig-tree '  (Isa.  xxxiv.  4). 

Our  Saviour  uses  similar  language  in  predicting 
the  destruction  of  Jerusalem :  '  The  sun  shall  be 
darkened,  and  the  moon  shall  not  give  her  light, 
and  the  stars  shall  fall  from  heaven,  and  the  powers 
of  the  heavens  shall  be  shaken'  (Matt.  xxiv.  29). 

The  concluding  verses  under  the  sixth  seal  set 
forth  the  terror  and  affright  which  the  revolution 
thus  predicted  shall  occasion.  The  great  ones  of 
the  earth,  with  all  its  guilty  inhabitants,  shall  flee 
and  hide  themselves  in  the  dens,  and  in  the  rocks  of 
the  mountains,  and  shall  say  to  the  mountains, 
'  Fall  on  us,  and  hide  us  from  the  face  of  Him  who 
sitteth  on  the  throne,  and  from  the  wrath  of  the 
Lamb.' 

The  mighty  revolution  here  symbolically  por- 
trayed is,  without  doubt,  the  revolution  under  Con- 
stantino, which  took  place  immediately  upon  the 
close  of  the  Diocletian  persecution.    Upon  the  death 


EaiTYIi 


76  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

of  Constantius  Chlorus,  who,  -with  the  title  of 
Caesar,  governed  the  western  provinces  of  the  em- 
pire, and  who,  though  a  pagan,  had  not  participat- 
ed in  the  recent  persecutions,  his  son  Constantino 
was,  by  the  army,  proclaimed  his  successor.  He 
had  several  colleagues  and  rivals,  all  of  whom 
sought  his  life  ;.  but,  one  after  another,  they  were 
taken  out  of  the  way.  Maxentius  and  Licinius  he 
vanquished  in  battle  ;  Maximin  committed  suicide ; 
wlnle  Galerius,  the  chief  instigator  of  the  late  per- 
secution, was  smitten  with  an  incurable  disease, 
attended  by  such  insupportable  torments,  that  he 
often  attempted  to  destroy  himself,  but  was  pre- 
vented. Thus  the  political  sun  and  moon  of  Rome 
were  darkened,  and  the  stars  fell  to  the  earth. 

Constantine  became  sole  emperor  of  Rome  in  the 
year  323.  Previous  to  this,  he  had  become  a  de- 
cided believer  in  the  Cliristian  religion.  He  soon 
effected  an  entire  revolution  in  the  civil  and  religious 
state  of  the  empire.  In  place  of  the  Roman  eagle, 
he  carried  before  his  armies  a  representation  of  the 
cross.  He  removed  the  seat  of  empire  from  Rome 
to  Constantinople,  and  adopted  a  new  form  of  go- 
vernment, putting  the  administration  of  it  into  the 
hands  of  four  principal  officers,  called  Praetoiian 
Prefects.  The  great  lights  of  the  heathen  world — 
the  powers  civil  and  religious — were  all  eclipsed 
and  obscured  ;  heathen  augurs  and  soothsayers  were 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  VIL,   VIIL  77 

suppressed ;  heathen  priests  and  magistrates  were 
removed;  heathen  temples  were  demoHshed,  and 
their  revenues  appropriated  to  better  uses.  In  short, 
a  new  rehgion  was  estabhshed,  and  a  new  order  of 
things  arose  in  the  world's  history.  Paganism  was 
effectually  overthrown,  its  votaries,  with  their  idols, 
were  cast  to  the  moles  and  the  bats ;  and,  after  lin- 
gering for  a  little  time,  it  passed  finally  away. 
Here,  surely,  was  change  enough  accomplished  to 
be  indicated  by  the  sublime  and  awful  imagery  of 
the  sixth  seal. 


78  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 


CHAPTER  YL 

THE   FIRST   FOUR   TRUMPETS. 
EEVELATION,  CHAPS.  VII.,  VHI. 

*  A  ND  after  these  things  I  saw  four  angels 
-LA.  standing  on  the  four  corners  of  the  earth, 
holding  tjie  four  winds  of  the  earth,  that  the  wind 
should  not  blow  on  the  earth,  nor  on  the  sea,  nor 
any  tree.  And  I  saw  another  angel  ascending 
from  the  east,  having  the  seal  of  the  living  God : 
^nd  he  cried  with  a  loud  voice  to  the  four  angels, 
to  whom  it  was  given  to  hurt  the  earth  and  the 
sea,  saying.  Hurt  not  the  earth,  neither  the  sea, 
nor  the  trees,  till  we  have  sealed  the  servants 
of  our  God  in  their  foreheads.  And  I  heard  the 
number  of  them  which  were  sealed:  an  hundred 
and  forty-four  thousand  of  all  the  tribes  of  the 
children  of  Israel ' — (i.e.,  twelve  thousand  from  each 
of  the  twelve  tribes)  (Rev.  vii.  1-8). 

The  seventh  chapter  of  the  Revelation  may  be 
regarded  as  an  appropriate  conclusion  of  the  events 
predicted  under  the  sixth  seal.  '  After  these  things ' 
(i.e.,  the  revolution  which  has  been  described),  John 
sees  four  angels  standing  on  the  four  corners  of 
the  earth,  holding  the  four  winds  of  heaven,  that, 


PcEVELATION,  CHAPTERS  VIL,  VIII.  79 

for  a  time,  they  should  not  blow  on  the  earth, 
nor  on  the  sea,  nor  on  any  tree.  Winds,  in  the 
language  of  the  prophets,  are  the  appropriate  sym- 
bols of  commotions  and  wars.  Thus  Jeremiah, 
speaking  of  the  overthrow  of  the  Persians,  says: 
'  And  upon  Elam  will  I  bring  the  four  winds  from 
the  four  quarters  of  heaven,  and  will  scatter  them 
toward  all  those  winds;  and  there  shall  be  no 
nation  whither  the  outcasts  of  Elam  shall  not 
come'  (Jer.  xlix.  36).  The  restraining  of  the 
four  whids,  therefore,  indicates,  that  commotions 
and  wars  should  be  temporarily  restrained  in  the 
Koman  earth,  and  that  the  revolution  before  pre- 
dicted should  be  followed  by  a  season  of  peace. 

And  so,  in  fact,  it  was.  When  Constantino 
had  triumphed  over  all  his  enemies,  and  become 
firmly  seated  on  his  throne,  there  was  a  season 
of  unusual  tranquillity.  There  were  few  or  no 
wars  or  civil  commotions  to  the  end  of  his  reign. 
On  this  subject  Eusebius  speaks  earnestly  and  par- 
ticularly, applying  the  language  of  the  Psalmist 
to  his  own  times  :  *  Come  hither,  and  behold 
the  works  of  the  Lord,  what  wonders  He  hath 
wrought  in  the  earth.  He  maketh  wars  to  cease 
unto  the  ends  of  the  earth ;  he  breaketh  the  bow, 
and  cutteth  the  spear  asunder ;  he  burneth  the 
chariot  in  the  fire.'^     Lactantius  also  tells  us,  in 

»  Ps.  xlvi.  8,  9,  according  to  the  Septiiagint. 


80  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

tlie  same  triumpliant  strain,  that  *  tranquillity  being 
restored  throughout  the  earth,  the  Church,  which 
was  lately  ruined,  riseth  again.  Now,  after  the 
agitations  of  so  great  a  tempest,  a  calm  air  and  the 
desired  light  became  resplendent.  Now  hath  God 
relieved  the  afflicted,  and  wiped  away  the  tears  of 
the  sorrowful.'  These  are  testimonies  of  contem- 
porary Christian  writers.  Some  medals  of  Constan- 
tino are  still  preserved,  with  the  head  of  the  emperor 
on  one  side,  and  this  inscription  on  the  other, — 
Beata  TRANQUILLITAS — Blessed  tranquillity. 

It  was  during  this  time  of  tranquillity  that  the 
servants  of  God  were  to  be  sealed  in  their  foreheads, 
— an  allusion  to  the  ancient  custom  of  marking- 
servants  in  their  foreheads,  to  show  who  they  were, 
and  to  whom  they  belonged. 

We  are  not  to  understand  that  any  visible  mark 
was  at  this  time  put  upon  the  foreheads  of  Chris- 
tians. But  God  goes  forth,  by  His  providence  and 
grace,  to  search  out  His  people,  and  sanctify  and 
seal  them  for  himself.  The  plu'aseology  implies 
that  a  selection  is  to  be  made.  All  are  not  sealed 
who  bear  the  Christian  name,  and  are  able  to  make 
a  fair  show  in  the  flesh ;  but  God  seeks  out  His  own, 
and  puts  a  mark  upon  them,  that  henceforth  He  may 
know,  and  the  world  may  know,  to  whom  they 
belong.  They  bear  unmistakably  '  the  spot  of  His 
children.' 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  VIL,  VIII.  81 

This  sealing  process  was  exceedingly  appro- 
priate in  the  times  of  which  we  speak.  Christianity 
was  undergoing  a  new  trial.  It  had  borne  the 
brunt  of  severe  and  protracted  persecution.  Can  it 
bear  as  well  the  trial  of  great  prosperity  ?  Chris- 
tianity was  now  the  religion  of  the  court  and  the 
state.  It  was  exceedingly  popular ;  and  multitudes 
were  eager  to  make  a  profession  of  it.  Thousands 
and  thousands  crowded  into  the  Churches,  and  soli- 
cited baptism.  It  is  said  that  twelve  thousand  men 
were  baptized  at  Kome  in  a  single  year,  besides  a 
proportionate  number  of  women  and  children. 

Nor  were  the  guardians  of  the  Churches  as  par- 
ticular as  they  should  have  been  in  looking  into 
the  character  of  those  who  were  admitted.  The 
consequence  was,  that  the  Churches  were  rapidly 
filling  up  with  mere  worldly  members, — ambitious, 
selfish,  ostentatious,  proud, — who  sought  its  fellow- 
ship only  that  they  might  secure  their  worldly  ends. 
Such  were  the  characters,  in  many  instances,  of  the 
bishops  and  ministers.  It  is  obvious,  therefore,  that 
the  Church  needed  a  sifting.  A  messenger  of  mercy 
must  pass  through  it,  and  separate,  so  far  as  possible, 
the  precious  from  the  vile.  He  must  search  out  and 
seal  those  who  belong  to  Christ.  He  must  prepare 
the  wheat  for  the  heavenly  garner,  and  leave  the 
chaff  to  the  winds.  In  no  other  way  can  the  Church 
of  God  be  prepared  for  those  ages  of  darkness  and 

L 


82  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

conflict  througli  which  it  has  yet  to  pass,  and  for 
those  triumphs  and  glories  which  await  it  in  the  dis- 
tant future,  on  earth  and  in  heaven. 

The  seaHng  process  was  of  the  fii'st  importance 
at  this  very  time.  And  John  tells  us  the  number 
that  were  sealed, — a  small  number,  it  would  seem, 
in  comparison  with  the  whole — a  definite  number,  in 
place  of  an  indefinite.  There  were  sealed  a  hun- 
dred and  forty-four  thousand  out  of  the  several 
tribes  of  Israel. 

The  word  Israel  is  here  used,  as  it  often  is  in 
the  Scriptures,  in  a  symbolical  sense.  It  stands  for 
the  Church  in  general — the  whole  Israel  of  God. 
This,  whether  made  up  of  Jews  or  Gentiles,  is  the 
Israel  here  spoken  of,  from  among  whom  the  sealed 
■ones  are  selected  and  taken. 

Wlien  the  sealing  process  was  over,  a  new  vision 
presented  itself  to  the  view  of  the  apostle :  '  I  be- 
held, and,  lo,  a  great  multitude,  which  no  man  could 
number,  of  all  nations,  and  kindreds,  and  people, 
and  tongues,  stood  before  the  throne,  and  before  the 
Lamb,  clothed  with  white  robes,  and  palms  in  their 
hands ;  and  cried  with  a  loud  voice,  saying.  Salva- 
tion to  our  God  which  sitteth  upon  the  throne,  and 
unto  the  Lamb'  (Rev.  vii.  9,  10). 

This  part  of  the  service  belonged  exclusively 
to  the  ransomed  ones — those  who  had  been  re- 
deemed from  the   earth.     These,   as   being  more 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  VIL,  VIIL  83 

particularly  interested,  were  permitted  to  lead  off 
in  the  heavenly  anthem.  But  when  their  part  was 
performed,  ^  all  the  angels  stood  round  about  the 
throne,  and  about  the  elders  and  the  four  living 
creatures,  and  fell  before  the  throne  on  their  faces, 
and  worshipped  God,  saying,  Amen :  Blessing,  and 
glory,  and  wisdom,  and  thanksgiving,  and  honour, 
and  power,  and  might,  be  unto  our  God  for  ever 
and  ever.     Amen '  (Rev.  vii.  11,  12). 

The  vision  was  a  heavenly  one,  and  this  is  one 
of  those  songs  of  triumph, — of  which  there  are 
several  in  the  book  of  Revelation, — which  are 
sung  by  the  heavenly  choirs,  in  view  of  the  vic- 
tories of  Christ's  cause  upon  the  earth ;  thus  show- 
ing the  sympathy  of  heaven  with  earth,  and  the 
deep  interest  which  is  felt  above  in  all  that  concerns 
the  militant  Church  below. 

Among  the  crowd  of  ransomed  worshippers  about 
the  throne,  John  saw  some  w^hose  robes  were  very 
white,  and  who  seemed  to  be  invested  with  peculiar 
honours ;  and  he  was  anxious  to  know  who  these 
were,  and  whence  they  came.  And  one  of  the 
elders  answered  and  said,  '  These  are  they  which 
came  out  of  great  tribulation,  and  have  washed  their 
robes,  and  made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb '  (Rev.  vii.  14).  The  reference  here  is,  with- 
out doubt,  primarily,  to  the  martyrs  who  had  come 
out  of  the  late  persecution ;  but,  ultimately,  to  all 


84       .         THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

those  who  are  called  to  great  sufferings  in  the 
cause  of  Christ,  who  bear  them  meekly,  and 
triumph  over  them.  To  all  such,  the  closing- 
words  of  comfort  and  promise  may  be  regarded  as 
addressed:  'They  shall  hunger  no  more,  neither 
thirst  any  more ;  neither  shall  the  sun  light  on 
them,  nor  any  heat.  For  the  Lamb  which  is  in  the 
midst  of  the  throne  shall  feed  them,  and  shall  lead 
them  unto  living  fountains  of  waters :  and  God 
shall  wipe  away  all  tears  from  their  eyes'  (Rev. 
vii.  16,  17). 

The  way  is  now  prepared  for  the  opening  of 
the  Seventh  Seal,  the  revelations  of  which  are 
of  great  extent,  including  the  seven  succeeding 
trumpets,  and  reaching  down  to  the  millennium. 

*  And  when  he  had  opened  the  seventh  seal, 
there  was  silence  in  heaven  about  the  space  of  half 
an  hour.  And  I  saw  the  seven  angels  which  stood 
before  God;  and  to  them  were  given  seven  trum- 
pets. And  another  angel  came  and  stood  at  the 
altar,  having  a  golden  censer  ;  and  there  was  given 
unto  him  much  incense,  that  he  should  offer  it  with 
the  prayers  of  all  saints  upon  the  golden  altar  which 
was  before  the  throne.  And  the  smoke  of  the  m- 
cense,  which  came  with  the  prayers  of  the  saints, 
ascended  up  before  God  out  of  the  angel's  hand. 
And  the  angel  took  the  censer,  and  filled  it  with  fii-e 
of  the  altar,  and  cast  it  into  the  earth :  and  there 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  VIL,  VIIl.  85 

were  voices,  and  tliunderings,  and  lightnings,  and 
an  earthquake'  (Rev.  viii.  1—5). 

Upon  the  opening  of  the  seal,  seven  angels  are 
seen  standing  before  the  throne,  to  whom  are  given 
seven  trumpets, — the  signals  of  alarm  and  war. 
But  before  going  forth  on  this  mission  of  blood, 
there  is  a  half  hour's  silence  in  heaven,  and  a  season 
of  devout  worship,  the  imagery  of  which  is  taken 
from  the  Jewish  temple.  In  performing  the  service 
of  the  temple,  one  of  the  priests  entered  daily  into 
the  holy  place,  and,  with  his  censer  filled  with  coals 
from  the  altar  of  burnt-offering,  approached  the  altar 
of  incense,  and  burned  incense  before  the  Lord. 
The  incense  was  a  symbol  of  prayer ;  and,  while  it 
was  burning,  the  people  were  silently  offering  up 
their  prayers.  They  '  were  praying  without  at  the 
time  of  incense.'  Thus  Zechariah  w^as  employed 
when  Gabriel  appeared  to  him,  and  promised  him  a 
son  (Luke  i.  9,  10). 

A  similar  service  seemed  now  to  be  performing 
in  heaven.  An  '  angel  came  and  stood  at  the  altar, 
having  a  golden  censer ;  and  much  incense  given 
unto  him,  that  he  should  offer  it  with  the  prayers 
of  all  saints  upon  the  golden  altar  which  was  before 
the  throne.'  While  this  service  was  in  progress, 
there  was,  of  course,  silence  in  heaven  for  the  space 
of  half  an  hour.  Perhaps  this  scene  was  designed 
to  denote  that  great  evils  were  impending,  and  that 


86  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

earth  and  heaven  should  unite  then:  suppHcatlons, 
that  they  might,  if  possible,  be  averted  or  mitigated. 
But  the  intercessions  offered  do  not  prevail.  The 
causes  of  the  coming  inflictions  lie  too  deep  to  be 
removed  by  prayer.  And  so  the  interceding  angel 
casts  his  censer  to  the  earth,  and  '  there  are  voices, 
and  thunderings,  and  lightnings,  and  an  earthquake,' 
— indicating  new  commotions  and  great  calamities 
to  be  speedily  inflicted. 

'And  the  seven  angels  which  had  the  seven 
trumpets  prepared  themselves  to  sound '  (Rev. 
viii.  6). 

The  First  Trumpet. 

'The  first  angel  sounded,  and  there  followed 
hail  and  fire  mingled  with  blood,  and  they  were 
cast  upon  the  earth:  and  the  thu'd  part  of  trees 
was  burnt  up,  and  all  green  grass  was  burnt  up* 
(Rev.  viii.  7). 

I  agree  with  those  interpreters  who  regard  the 
blast  of  the  first  four  of  these  trumpets  as  indicating 
the  calamities,  which  fell  upon  the  western  Roman 
empire,  and  resulted  in  its  overthrow  in  the  latter 
part  of  the  fifth  century.  History  marks  four  of 
these  incursions — the  sweeping  of  the  fiery  storm — 
which  followed  each  other  in  rapid  succession,  and 
which  left  behind  them  naught  of  that  mighty  power 
which  had  so  long  ruled  at  Rome,  except  the  name. 

The  symbols  employed  under  the  first  trumpet, — 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  VIL,  VIII.  87 

*  hail  and  fire  mingled  with  blood,' — indicate  a  great 
and  sweeping  destruction,  which  seems  to  have 
been  fulfilled  in  the  invasion  of  Alaric,  king  of  the 
Goths,  in  the  year  410. 

Alaric  had  been  employed  under  Theodosius, 
and  in  his  armies  had  acquired  a  knowledge  of  the 
art  of  war.  Upon  the  death  of  Theodosius,  he  was 
disappointed  in  not  being  raised  to  the  head  of  the 
Roman  armies,  and  so  he  revolted,  and  became  a 
leader  of  the  Goths.  He  first  invaded  and  con- 
quered Greece,  destroying  the  males  who  were  of 
an  age  to  bear  arms,  and  driving  away  the  females, 
with  the  spoil  and  cattle  of  the  flaming  villages. 
He  next  determined  to  enter  Italy ;  and  to  plant,  if 
possible,  the  Gothic  standard  on  the  walls  of  Rome. 
He  was  checked  in  his  first  attempt  by  the  army  of 
Stilicho ;  but  he  soon  returned,  swept  over  the 
country,  and  more  than  once  besieged  and  pillaged 
the  imperial  city.  The  sufierings  at  Rome  in  these 
sieges  were  beyond  description.  In  repeated  in- 
stances, mothers  were  compelled  to  cook  and  eat 
their  own  children.  Meanwhile,  the  imbecile  em- 
peror Honorius  and  his  court  had  concealed  them- 
selves in  the  fastnesses  of  Ravenna. 

From  Italy,  Alaric  proceeded  to  invade  the  cities 
and  fertile  provinces  of  Gaul.  The  flourishing  city 
of  Metz  Avas  surprised  and  destroyed,  and  many 
thousands   of   Christians  were  massacred   in   the 


88  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED  : 

cliiircli.  Worms  was  taken  after  a  long  and  ob- 
stinate siege.  Strasburg,  Spires,  Rheims,  Tournay, 
Arras,  and  Amiens,  experienced  the  cruel  oppression 
of  the  Gotliic  yoke  ;  and  the  flames  of  war  spread 
from  the  banks  of  the  Rhine  over  the  greatest  part 
of  the  seventeen  provinces  of  Gaul.  That  rich  and 
extensive  country,  from  the  ocean  to  the  Pyrenees 
and  the  Alps,  was  delivered  to  the  barbarians,  who 
drove  before  them,  in  a  promiscuous  croAvd,  the 
people  of  all  classes,  with  the  spoils  of  their  houses, 
their  fields,  and  their  altars. 

It  would  be  unsafe  to  say  that  precisely  a  third 
part  of  the  western  Roman  empire  was  over-run  and 
pillaged  by  Alaric ;  but  enough  of  it  fell  under  his 
destroying  hand  to  justify  the  prophetical  indica- 
tions of  the  first  trumpet. 

The  Second  Trumpet. 

*  And  the  second  angel  sounded,  and  as  it  were 
a  great  mountain  burning  with  fire  was  cast  into  the 
sea :  and  the  third  part  of  the  sea  became  blood ; 
and  the  third  part  of  the  creatures  which  were  in 
the  sea,  and  had  life,  died ;  and  the  third  part  of  the 
ships  were  destroyed '  (Rev.  viii.  8,  9). 

The  symbols  here  indicate  some  great  and  angry 
power,  like  a  burning  mountain,  precipitated  upon 
the  maritime  parts  of  the  Roman  empire,  by  which 
its  cities  would  be  wasted  and  its  commerce  de- 
stroyed.    If  we  were  correct  in  our  interpretation 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  VIL,  VIII.  89 

of  tlie  previous  trumpet,  this  must  refer  to  Genseric 
and  his  ruthless  Vandals.  This  invasion  followed 
quick  upon  that  of  Alaric,  commencing  about  the 
year  428,  and  continuing  for  the  next  forty  years. 
The  Goths  and  Vandals  are  usually  mentioned 
together,  and  they  seem  to  have  been  originally 
one  people.  They  invaded  the  Roman  empire  to- 
gether in  the  time  of  Theodosius.  At  a  later  period, 
the  Vandals,  under  Genseric,  passed  through  the 
whole  of  what  is  now  France  and  Spain,  and  crossed 
over  into  Africa.  They  conquered  Carthage,  esta- 
blished an  independent  government,  and  thence 
through  a  long  period  ravaged  the  neighbouring 
coasts  and  islands,  destroyed  the  ships  and  com- 
merce of  the  Romans,  and  in  this  way  hastened  the 
downfall  of  the  empire.  The  ambition  of  Genseric 
was  without  scruple  and  without ,  bounds.  In  a 
little  time,  all  the  fruitful  provinces  lying  between 
Tangier  and  Tripoli  were  overwhelmed.  Where 
these  marauders  encountered  resistance,  they  seldom 
gave  quarter,  and  the  death  of  their  warriors  was 
expiated  by  the  ruin  of  the  cities  under  whose  walls 
they  fell.  The  result  of  this  invasion  was  the  con- 
quest of  all  Northern  Africa,  and  the  establishment 
of  a  power  which  waged  perpetual  war  with  Rome. 
Genseric  now  resolved  to  establish  a  naval 
power ;  and  to  resolve  and  to  execute  were  with 
him  almost  the  same.     His  fleets  soon  claimed  the 

M 


90  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

empire  of  tlie  Mediterranean,  and  his  conquests  pro- 
voked the  sluggish  emperor  to  oppose  him.  He, 
too,  prepared  a  fleet ;  but  at  the  first  onset  it  fell 
into  the  hands  of  the  Vandals,  and  they  soon  cast 
anchor  at  the  mouth  of  the  Tiber.  Great  Kome 
could  offer  no  efiectual  resistance.  The  city  was 
taken  and  given  up  to  pillage  and  slaughter  for 
fourteen  successive  days  and  nights. 

Genseric  continued  his  naval  depredations  to  an 
advanced  period  of  life.  He  repeatedly  visited  the 
coasts  of  Spain,  Liguria,  Tuscany,  Campania,  Apulia, 
Calabria,  Dalmatia,  Venice,  Epirus,  Sicily,  and 
Greece,  spreading  terror  and  desolation  from  the 
pillars  of  Hercules  to  the  Nile.  As  these  freebooters 
were  more  desirous  of  spoil  than  of  glory,  they  sel- 
dom attacked  fortified  cities,  or  engaged  regular 
troops  in  the  open  field,  but  ravaged  defenceless 
coasts  and  islands,  carrying  dismay  and  desolation 
wherever  they  appeared. 

How  far  this  description  agrees  with  the  symbols 
in  the  passage  before  us, — *  a  great  mountain  burn- 
ing with  fire  cast  into  the  sea,'  by  which  a  third  part 
of  the  ships  and  the  creatures  in  the  sea  were  de- 
stroyed, I  must  leave  to  my  readers  to  judge.  If 
the  career  of  Genseric  and  liis  Vandals  were  to  be 
portrayed  at  all  by  symbols,  I  can  hardly  think  of 
any  symbols  more  appropriate  than  those  presented 
under  the  second  trumpet. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  VIZ.,   VIII.  91 

The  Third  Trumpet. 

*  And  the  third  angel  sounded,  and  there  fell  a 
great  star  from  heaven,  burning  as  it  were  a  lamp, 
and  it  fell  upon  the  third  part  of  the  rivers,  and  upon 
the  fountains  of  waters ;  and  the  name  of  the  star 
is  called  Wormwood:  and  the  third  part  of  the 
waters  became  wormwood ;  and  many  men  died  of 
the  waters,  because  they  were  made  bitter '  (Rev. 
viii.  10,  11). 

A  star,  in  the  language  of  the  prophets,  denotes 
some  illustrious,  distinguished  personage, — some- 
times a  religious  teacher,  but  more  frequently  a 
monarch,  or  some  remarkable  civil  or  military  leader. 
Thus  the  fallen  king  of  Babylon  is  called  Lucifer, 
or  the  morning  star.  '  How  art  thou  fallen  from 
heaven,  0  Lucifer,  son  of  the  morning !  how  art 
thou  cast  down  to  the  ground,  which  didst  weaken 
the  nations!'  (Isa.  xiv.  12).  The  star  fallmg  from 
heaven,  or  the  blazing  meteor  gleaming  through  the 
sky,  in  the  passage  before  us,  may  well  denote  some 
great  military  chieftain ;  and  the  result  of  his  fall, 
turning  every  thing  he  touches  into  wormwood, 
shows  him  to  be  a  most  bitter  enemy. 

Following  the  train  of  thought  which  has  been 
pursued  thus  far,  considering  the  blasts  of  these 
trumpets  as  pre-figuring  the  personages  and  events 
which  prepared  the  way  for  the  downfall  of  the 
western  Roman  empire,  we  cannot  be  mistaken  in 


92  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

supposing  Attila,  the  leader  of  the  terrible  bands 
of  Huns  (who  styled  himself,  and  was  styled  by 
others,  the  'Scourge  of  God'),  as  designated  by 
the  falling  star. 

After  Alaric  and  Genseric,  Attila  occupies  the 
next  place  among  the  destroyers  of  ancient  Rome. 
It  is  true,  indeed,  that  he  was  contemporary  with 
Genseric,  and  died  before  him ;  but  he  commenced 
his  ravages  at  a  later  period,  and  on  this  account 
may  be  regarded  as  coming  after  him.  He  came 
suddenly  from  the  East,  like  a  flaming  meteor, 
gathering  up  in  his  progress  an  army  of  Huns,  and 
pouring  them  down  upon  the  more  defenceless 
parts  of  the  Roman  empire.  The  portions  of  the 
empire  most  affected  by  the  ravages  of  the  Huns 
were  precisely  those  designated  by  the  blast  of  the 
third  trumpet,  viz. :  '  the  rivers  and  fountains  of 
waters.'  His  depredations  were  chiefly  confined  to 
the  sides  of  the  Alps,  those  places  whence  the  rivers 
flow  down  into  Italy. 

Attila  was  defeated  in  the  battle  of  Clialons ; 
but  he  soon  recovered  his  vigour,  collected  his  forces, 
and  was  prepared  for  another  descent  upon  Italy. 
He  destroyed  Aquileia,  and  in  his  march  from  thence, 
the  cities  of  Altinum,  Concordia,  and  Padua,  were 
reduced  to  ashes.  He  next  spread  himself  over  the 
fertile  plains  of  Lombardy, — a  land  of  rivers  and 
streams,  divided  by  the  Po,  and  lying  between  the 


IIEVELATION,  CHAPTERS  VIL,  VIII.  93 

Alps  and  Apennines.  It  was  a  saying  worthy  of  the 
ferocious  pride  of  Attila,  that  '  the  grass  never  grew 
where  his  horse  had  trod.'  At  least  a  third  part  of 
the  empire  was  invaded  and  desolated  in  his  savage 
marches ;  and  the  result  of  his  invasion  was  as  dis- 
astrous as  if  a  bitter  star  had  fallen  into  all  the 
rivers  and  foimtains,  and  turned  them  into  gall  and 
wormwood. 

The  Fourth  Trumpet. 

*  And  the  fourth  angel  sounded,  and  the  third 
part  of  the  sun  was  smitten,  and  the  third  part  of 
the  moon,  and  the  third  part  of  the  stars;  so  as 
the  third  part  of  them  was  darkened,  and  the  day 
shone  not  for  a  third  part  of  it,  and  the  night  like- 
wise '  (Rev.  viii.  12). 

At  the  sounding  of  the  fourth  trumpet,  the  great 
lights  of  the  Roman  empire  were  eclipsed  and 
darkened,  so  that  they  shone  not  clearly,  and  but 
for  a  part  of  the  time.  Genseric  and  Attila  left  the 
■empire  in  a  weak,  impoverished,  and  desperate  con- 
dition. It  struggled  on,  however,  through  eight 
short  and  turbulent  reigns,  for  the  space  of  about 
twenty  years,  when  it  came  to  an  end  in  the  year 
476.  The  last  reigning  emperor  was  Momyllus, 
— contemptuously  called  Augustulus,  or  the  little 
Augustus.  This  change  was  effected  by  Odoacer, 
£1  Gothic  chieftain,  who,  coming  to  Rome  with,  an 
army,  stripped  Momyllus  of  his  imperial  robes,  put 


94  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED 

an  end  to  his  dominion,  and  caused  himself  to  be 
proclaimed  king  of  Italy.  He  did  not,  however, 
change  entirely  the  ancient  form  of  government. 
If  the  sun  was  eclipsed,  some  of  the  lesser  lights 
were  allowed  to  remain.  He  still  permitted  the 
Eomans  to  have  their  senate,  their  consuls,  and 
other  magistrates,  and  public  aifairs  were  trans- 
acted much  as  they  had  been  in  former  days. 

Odoacer  reigned  sixteen  years,  when  his  king- 
dom was  overthrown  by  Theodoric,  king  of  the 
Ostrogoths.  The  government  was  in  his  hands 
and  in  those  of  his  successors,  for  the  next  sixty 
years. 


REVELATION,  CHABTER  IX.  95 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  FIFTH  AND  SIXTH  TRUMPETS. 

REVELATION,  CHAP.  IX. 

I  HAVE  thus  endeavoured  to  give  the  import  of 
the  four  first  trumpets,  embracing  the  four  suc- 
cessive blows  which  were  struck  upon  western 
Rome  by  Alaric,  Genseric,  Attila,  and  Odoacer, 
until  the  empire  fell  to  rise  no  more. 

And  now  there  is  a  pause  between  the  sound- 
ing of  the  fourth  trumpet  and  the  fifth ;  a  note  of 
solemn,  awful  warning  is  heard  from  the  heavens : 

*  And  I  beheld,  and  heard  an  angel  flying  through 
the  midst  of  heaven,  saying  with  a  loud  voice,  Woe, 
woe,  woe,  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  by  reason 
of  the  other  voices  of  the  trumpet  of  the  three 
angels,  which  are  yet  to  sound!'  (Rev.  viii.  13). 

The  woe  is  repeated  three  times  to  show  the 
certainty  and  intensity  of  it,  and  to  call  attention 
to  what  remains  of  this  magnificent  prophecy. 

The  Fifth  Trumpet. 

*  And  the  fifth  angel  sounded,  and  I  saw  a  star 
fall  from  heaven  unto  the  earth :  and  to  him  was 


96  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

given  the  key  of  tlie  bottomless  pit.  And  he  opened 
the  bottomless  pit ;  and  there  arose  a  smoke  out  of 
the  pit,  as  the  smoke  of  a  great  furnace ;  and  the 
sun  and  the  air  were  darkened  by  reason  of  the 
smoke  of  the  pit.  And  there  came  out  of  the 
smoke  locusts  upon  the  earth :  and  unto  them  was 
given  power,  as  the  scorpions  of  the  earth  have 
power.  And  it  was  commanded  them  that  they 
should  not  hurt  the  grass  of  the  earth,  neither  any 
green  thing,  neither  any  tree ;  but  only  those  men 
which  have  not  the  seal  of  God  in  their  foreheads. 
And  to  them  it  was  given  that  they  should  not 
kill  them,  but  that  they  should  be  tormented  five 
months ;  and  their  torment  was  as  the  torment  of 
a  scorpion,  when  he  striketh  a  man.  And  in  those 
days  shall  men  seek  death,  and  shall  not  find  it ; 
and  shall  desire  to  die,  and  death  shall  flee  from 
them.  And  the  shapes  of  the  locusts  were  like 
unto  horses  prepared  unto  battle;  and  on  their 
heads  were  as  it  were  crowns  like  gold,  and  their 
faces  were  as  the  faces  of  men.  And  they  had  hair 
as  the  hau'  of  women,  and  their  teeth  were  as  the 
teeth  of  lions.  And  they  had  breastplates,  as  it 
were  breastplates  of  iron ;  and  the  sound  of  their 
wiugs  was  as  the  sound  of  chariots  of  many  horses 
running  to  battle.  And  they  had  tails  like  unto 
scorpions,  and  there  were  stings  in  their  tails ;  and 
their  power  was  to  hurt  men  five  months.     And 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  IX.  97 

tliey  had  a  king  over  tliem,  which  is  the  angel  of 
the  bottomless  pit,  whose  name  in  the  Hebrew 
tongue  is  Abaddon,  but  in  the  Greek  tongue  hath 
his  name  Apollyon'  (Rev.  ix.  1—11). 

I  have  said  already  that  the  four  first  trumpets 
foreshow  the  events  whicli  led  to  the  downfall  of 
the  western  Roman  empire,  which  took  place  in 
the  year  476.  I  agree  with  the  most  distinguished 
Protestant  commentators,  that  the  fifth  and  sixth 
trumpets  relate  to  the  Eastern  empire,  and  to  events 
which  resulted  in  its  overthrow. 

The  star  which  John  saw  fall  from  heaven  on 
the  sounding  of  the  fifth  trumpet  denotes,  as  usual, 
a  leader, — it  may  be  a  distinguished  teacher,  or  a 
military  chieftain,  or  both.  It  represents,  in  this 
case,  I  cannot  doubt,  Mohammed.  He  has  the  key 
of  the  bottomless  pit,  and  opens  it,  and  from  it 
issues  a  smoke  which  darkens  the  whole  atmosphere. 
With  the  smoke,  there  came  forth  also  a  prodigious 
army  of  locusts.  A  full  description  of  the  locusts 
is  given,  which  shows  that  they  were  not  literal 
locusts,  but  represent  a  mighty  army — Mohammed's 
army  of  Saracen  w^arriors.  The  fact  that  locusts 
were  the  selected  symbols  here,  shows  that  the 
prophecy  has  an  oriental  application.  Locusts  are 
the  periodical  scourges  of  the  east. 

This  army  is  commissioned,  not  to  hurt  the 
earth,  or  any  green  thing,  but  only  the  men  that 

N 


98  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

have  not  tlie  seal  of  God  on  tlieir  forelieads;  re- 
ferring back  to  the  sealing  spoken  of  in  the  seventh 
chapter.  In  other  words,  their  commission  is  against, 
not  God's  sealed,  sanctified  ones,  bnt  the  wicked  of 
the  earth — idolaters,  blasphemers,  and  apostate 
Christians.  Nor  were  they  to  aim  at  destroying 
the  lives  even  of  these,  but  were  to  torment  them 
for  the  space  of  five  months. 

But  what  are  we  to  understand  by  these  five 
months  ?  Are  they  literal  months,  or  do  they  de- 
note a  much  longer  period?  It  is  insisted  by  some 
interpreters  that  they  must  be  literal  months,  since 
the  ravages  of  locusts  are  usually  limited  to  the 
five  warmest  months  of  the  year.  But  then  these 
are  not  literal  locusts — from  the  very  description 
they  cannot  be — and  hence  the  impropriety  of 
limiting  their  ravages  and  torments  to  the  short 
period  of  five  literal  months. 

It  is  msisted  by  another  class  of  interpreters 
that,  in  prophetic  language,  a  day  often  stands  for 
a  year;  and  if  so  interpreted  in  this  place,  the 
ravages  of  the  army  denoted  by  the  locusts  would 
continue  a  hundred  and  fifty  years. 

With  regard  to  this  question  of  time,  I  remark 
that,  in  prophetic  language,  a  day  is  often — not  al- 
ways— reckoned  for  a  year.  So  it  has  been  in  other 
ages ;  so  it  may  be  here.  Thus  when  it  was  pre- 
dicted of  the  Israelites  that  they  should  wander  in 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  IX.  99 

the  wilderness  forty  years,  it  was  added  :  'After  the 
number  of  the  days  in  which  ye  searched  the  land, 
even  forty  days,  eacJi  day  for  a  year,  shall  ye  bear 
your  iniquities,  even/or^^  years''  (Numb.  xiv.  34).  So 
the  prophet  Ezekiel,  when  predicting  the  siege  and 
capture  of  Jerusalem,  was  directed  to  'lie  on  his 
right  side,  and  bear  the  iniquity  of  the  house  of 
Judali  forty  days ;  I  have  appointed  thee  each  day 
for  a  year '  (Ezek.  iv.  6). 

In  the  prophecy  of  Daniel,  this  mode  of  pro- 
phetic expression  is  unquestionably  resorted  to : 
*  Seventy  weeks  are  determined  upon  thy  people, 
and  upon  thy  holy  city,  to  finish  the  transgression, 
and  to  make  an  end  of  sins,  and  to  make  recon- 
ciliation for  iniquity,  and  to  bring  in  everlasting 
righteousness,  and  to  seal  up  the  vision  and  pro- 
phecy, and  to  anoint  the  Most  Holy '  (Dan.  ix.  24). 
This  prediction  refers,  undoubtedly,  to  the  Messiah, 
and  to  the  time  when  He  should  appear  to  make 
expiation  for  sin.  The  commencement  of  the 
seventy  weeks  is  fixed  by  Daniel  himself,  or  rather 
by  the  revealing  angel.  It  was  '  from  the  going 
forth  of  the  decree  to  restore  and  to  build  Jerusa- 
lem' (Dan.  ix.  25).  The  decree  to  restore  and  to 
build  Jerusalem  was  given  to  Nehemiah,  by  Ar- 
taxerxes  Longimanus,  in  the  twentieth  year  of  his 
reign  (Neh.  ii.  1).  And  from  this  time  to  the  death 
of  Christ,   according  to  the  best  chronologists,  is 


100  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

four  hundred   and   ninety  years — seventy  weeks, 
counting  a  day  for  a  year. 

It  is  objected  to  this  interpretation,  that  what 
our  translators  render  *  seventy  weeks,'  is  in  the 
original  of  Daniel  *  seventy  seven,'  which  may 
mean  seventy  sevens  of  years^  that  is,  four  hundred 
and  ninety  years;  thus  bringing  us  to  the  same 
result,  without  supposing  a  day  to  stand  for  a 
year. 

The  only  question  here  is;  did  Daniel,  or  the 
revealing  angel,  intend,  by  the  seventy  sevens, 
sevens  of  dmjs^  or  sevens  of  years  ?  We  think  he 
must  have  intended  sevens  of  days,  since,  from  the 
creation,  time  had  been  divided  into  weeks  of  seven 
days ;  so  that  a  seven  or  sevens  would  naturally  be 
understood  to  mean  seven  days,  whether  the  word 
days  was  expressed  or  not.  x\nd  critics  have  no 
reason  or  authority  for  changing  the  meaning  into 
sevens  of  years,  more  than  for  changing  it  into 
sevens  of  months,  or  sevens  of  hours.  A  seven  is 
naturally  understood  to  be  a  hebdomad,  a  week  o 
seven  days.  And  so  the  word  always  has  been 
understood  and  translated.^  The  proper  transla- 
tion of  the  passage  before  us  is,  therefore,  that  con- 
tained in  our  Bible :  '  Seventy  weeks  are  determined 

^  See  not  only  the  passaj^es  in  Dan.  ix.  24-2G,  but  also  in  Dan. 
X.  2,  3 ;  Ex.  xxiv.  22 ;  Numb,  xxviii.  26 ;  Deut.  xvi.  9-lG ;  2  Chron. 
viii.  13  ;  Jer.  v.  24  ;  Ezck.  xlv.  21,  etc. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  JX.  101 

iipon  tliy  people,  and  upon  the  holy  city,'  that  is, 
seventy  times  seven  days  —  four  hundred  and 
ninety  days ;  and  the  fulfilment  of  the  prophecy 
shows  that  each  of  these  days  must  stand  for  a 
year. 

There  are  other  passages  in  Daniel  in  which  the 
same  mode  of  reckoning  occurs,  to  which  I  shall 
refer  in  another  connection.  Instances  of  it  also 
occur  in  the  Eevelation.  It  is  said  to  the  Church  in 
Smyrna :  '  The  devil  shall  cast  some  of  you  into 
prison,  that  ye  may  be  tried ;  and  ye  shall  have 
tribulation  ten  days'  (Rev.  ii.  10).  No  one  can 
suppose  that  the  persecution  here  referred  to  Avould 
be  limited  to  ten  literal  days.  The  reference  is, 
undoubtedly,  to  the  Diocletian  persecution,  which 
lasted  ten  years. 

There  are  other  instances  in  the  Revelation  in 
which  the  same  notation  of  prophetic  time  is  em- 
ployed, particularly  those  in  which  *  the  holy  city 
is  to  be  trodden  under  foot  forty  and  two  months ; ' 
and  the  two  witnesses  are  to  'prophesy  a  thousand 
and  two  hundred  and  three  score  days;'  and  the 
mystical  woman  is  to  be  nourished  in  the  wdlder- 
ness  '  for  a  time  and  times  and  half  a  time ; '  and  in 
which  '  power  was  given  unto  the  beast  to  continue 
forty  and  two  months.^  These  notes  of  time,  as  I 
shall   show,  all  refer  to  the  same   period,  twelve 

^  See  Rev.  ii.  2,  3,  and  xii.  14,  and  xiii.  5. 


102  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

hundred  and  sixty  days,  and  stand  for  twelve  hun- 
red  and  sixty  years,  a  day  being  reckoned  for  a  year.^ 
If  it  be  inquired,  how  we  are  to  determine,  in 
any  given  case,  whether  the  days  are  to  be  imder- 
8tood  Hterally,  or  otherwise,  I  answer,  we  are  to  be 
guided  chiefly,  as  in  other  cases,  by  the  connection 
and  the  sense.  Thus,  when  it  is  said  in  Jeremiah : 
*  These  nations  shall  serve  the  king  of  Babylon 
seventy  years,'  the  connection  shows  that  literal 
years  are  intended.  But  when  Daniel  predicts,  in 
a  passage  already  considered,  the  death  of  the 
Messiah  at  the  end  of  seventy  weeks,  both  the 
connection  and  the  fulfilment  show  that  a  much 
longer  period  is  indicated. 

*  Professor  Cowles  denounces  '  this  day-for-a-year  theory  as  utterly 
l)aseless  and  false,  and  of  course  mischievous  and  delusive  ; '  and  yet, 
strange  to  say,  he  does  not  himself  interpret  the  notation  of  time  in 
the  Apocalypse  literally,  but  prolongs  them  indefinitely,  or  as  much  as 
!ie  has  occasion.  Thus,  it  is  said  expressly  of  the  two  witnesses,  that 
they  prophesied  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  days.  But  Professor  Cowles 
cays,  '  It  matters  not  how  long  the  two  witnesses  did  actually  testify 
to  the  Jews  before  the  fall  of  their  city,'  p.  127.  They  must  have 
testified,  according  to  his  theory,  at  least  forty  years,  for  he  reckons 
John  the  Baptist  to  be  the  first  of  them,  p,  132.  So  the  mystical 
^voman  is  protected  in  the  wilderness  '  for  a  time,  times,  and  half  a 
time,'  or  three  years  and  a  half.  But  according  to  Professor  Cowles, 
'  We  have  no  occasion  to  inquire  for  the  same  historic  duration  of 
cither  the  Church's  protection  or  of  her  persecution.  God  kept  her 
in  the  wilderness  as  long  as  the  occasion  demanded^''  p.  147.  So  the 
forty  and  two  months  of  the  beast's  continuance  indicates,  according 
to  Professor  Cowles,  '  an  indefinite  period  of  calamity,'  p.  155.  And 
<jven  the  thousand  years  of  the  millennium  does  not,  in  his  reckoning, 
signify  a  thousand  years,  but  a  vastly  longer  period. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  IX.  103 

But  to  return  from  this  indispensable  digression 
to  the  case  of  the  Saracen  warriors,  whose  ravages 
were  to  continue  five  months,  every  one  must  see 
that  five  literal  months  cannot  be  here  intended. 
A  much  longer  period  must  be  indicated.  In  the 
language  of  prophecy, — such  as  we  have  seen  is 
often  used, — these  five  months,  or  one  hundred 
and  fifty  days,  may  stand  for  one  hundred  and  fifty 
years.  Let  us  inquire,  then,  whether  the  depreda- 
tions and  conquests  of  the  Saracens  continued  as 
long  as  this. 

The  Saracens  first  issued  from  the  desert  into 
Syria,  and  commenced  their  wars  upon  Christian 
nations  about  the  year  629.  From  this  time,  for 
the  next  hundred  and  fifty  years,  they  were  the 
most  successful  warriors  on  the  earth.  They  carried 
their  conquests  through  Egypt  and  all  northern 
Africa,  and  then  through  the  greater  part  of  Spain 
and  into  France.  At  the  same  time,  they  twice  be- 
sieged Constantinople,  and  laid  waste  the  greater 
part  of  the  eastern  Roman  empire.  They  entered 
Europe  from  the  East,  intending  and  expecting  to 
unite  their  eastern  and  western  conquests  some- 
where in  Italy,  and  to  have  all  Christendom  at 
their  feet.  But  they  were  defeated  and  driven 
back  in  France  by  Charles  Martel,  in  the  year  732. 
Soon  after  this,  their  conquests  were  checked  in  the 
East ;  and  by  the  year  779 — one  hundred  and  fifty 


104  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

years  from  tlie  commencement  of  their  ravages — 
their  power  to  injure  had,  in  great  measure,  ceased. 
The  caliphs  had  become  rich,  luxurious,  and  effemi- 
nate; they  built  cities,  palaces,  and  castles;  they 
devoted  much  time  to  the  pursuits  of  science  and 
the  arts  of  peace.  They  did  not  cease  to  exist  as  a 
people,  but  their  power  to  do  hurt  was  taken  away. 
They  were  no  longer  a  terror  to  their  Christian 
neighbours,  and  to  the  nations  of  the  earth. 

'  One  woe  is  past ;  and,  behold,  there  come  two 
woes  more  hereafter'  (Rev.  ix.  12). 

The  Sixth  Trumpet. 

'And  the  sixth  angel  sounded,  and  I  heard  a 
voice  from  the  four  horns  of  the  golden  altar  which 
is  before  God,  saying  to  the  sixth  angel  which 
had  the  trumpet,  Loose  the  four  angels  which 
are  bound  in  the  great  river  Euphrates.  And  the 
four  angels  were  loosed,  which  were  prepared  for 
an  hour,  and  a  day,  and  a  month,  and  a  year,  for  to 
slay  the  third  part  of  men.  And  the  number  of  the 
army  of  the  horsemen  were  two  hundred  thousand 
thousand :  and  I  heard  the  number  of  them.  And 
thus  I  saw  the  horses  in  the  vision,  and  them  that 
sat  on  them,  having  breastplates  of  fire,  and  of 
jacinth,  and  brimstone :  and  the  heads  of  the 
horses  were  as  the  heads  of  lions ;  and  out  of  their 
mouths  issued  fire  and  smoke  and  brimstone.  By 
these  three  was  the  third  part  of  men  killed,  by  the 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  IX.  105 

fire,  and  by  the  smoke,  and  by  the  brhnstone,  which 
issued  out  of  their  mouths.  For  their  power  is  in 
their  mouth,  and  in  their  tails ;  for  their  tails  were 
like  unto  serpents,  and  had  heads,  and  with  them 
they  do  hurt'  (Rev.  ix.  13-19). 

From  the  symbols  employed  under  the  fifth 
trumpet,  viz.,  the  locusts,  we  inferred  that  the  pre- 
diction had  reference  to  affairs  in  the  East.  We 
have  more  decisive  proof  of  an  eastern  applica- 
tion of  the  prediction  under  the  sixth  trumpet ;  for 
the  scene  is  laid  expressly  on  the  banks  of  the 
Euphrates.  As  the  preceding  trumpet  set  forth  the 
ravages  of  the  Saracen  warriors,  so  the  one  before 
us  refers,  undoubtedly,  to  the  subsequent  con- 
quests of  the  Turks ;  reaching  down  to  the  over- 
throw of  the  eastern  Roman  empire,  and  the  capture 
of  Constantinople. 

The  Turks,  or  Turkomans,  were  originally  an 
horde  of  Tartars,  having  their  home  in  the  far  East, 
and  in  the  region  of  the  Caspian  Sea.  They  first 
invaded  and  conquered  Persia,  and  a  part  of  India, 
and  then  came  in  contact  with  the  caliphs  of  Bag- 
dad and  Bassora.  About  this  time  they  renounced 
their  Pagan  religion,  and  embraced  the  Moham- 
medan. For  a  time  they  were  unable  to  cross  the 
Euphrates  and  invade  the  countries  of  western  Asia. 
The  power  of  the  caliphs  prevented  them.     But 

in  the  year  1055,  Bagdad  was  taken  by  the  Turko- 

O 


108  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

mans,  and  the  way  was  open  for  them  to  extend 
their  victories  westward.  The  capture  of  Bagdad 
was  the  event  which  loosed  the  four  evil  angels, 
which  had  been  held  back  on  the  eastern  bank  of 
the  Euphrates,  and  left  them  at  liberty  to  pursue 
their  conquests.  They  immediately  crossed  the 
river  with  a  vast  army,  chiefly  horsemen,  the  num- 
ber of  which  John  sets  do^Ti  as  *  two  hundred  thou- 
sand thousand.'  ^ 

These  are  what  John  saw  in  vision, — a  vast 
and  all  but  numberless  army.^  They  did  not  rush  at 
once  to  the  capture  of  Constantinople,  but  passed 
many  years  in  a  roving,  marauding  course  of  life, — 
sometimes  victorious  and  sometimes  vanquished, — 
but  getting  meanwhile  a  foot-hold  in  western  Asia, 
and  gathering  strength  for  more  decisive  operations. 
At  length,  after  much  fighting  and  long  prepara- 
tion, Constantinople  was  attacked.  A  part  of  it 
was  taken  by  storm,  and  a  part  capitulated.  In  the 
former  part.  Christian  worship  and  ordinances  were 
at  once  suppressed  ;  in  the  latter,  they  were  allowed 
to  be  continued  for  a  time.  But  ere  long  they  Avero 
abolished  altogether,  and  the  venerable  capital  of 
the  eastern  empire  became  a  Mohammedan  city. 

This  event  took  place  in  the  year  1453 ;  and  we 
are  now  to  inquire  whether  the  time  was  designated 

Gibbon,  speaking  of  this  invasion,  says  :  '  The  myriads  of  Turkisli 
horse  overspread  a  frontier  of  six  hundred  miles.'     Vol.  v.  p.  512. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  IX.  107 

in  the  prediction.  After  the  Turkish  army  was  let 
loose  upon  western  Asia,  it  was  to  continue  '  for  an 
hour,  a  day,  a  month,  and  a  year.'  In  prophetic 
time,  this  amounts  to  a  little  more  than  three  hun- 
dred and  ninety-one  years.  The  Turks  commenced 
their  career  of  conquest  in  the  year  1062.  To  this 
number  add  three  hundred  and  ninety-one,  and  you 
have  1453, — the  precise  year  in  which Constantino]3le 
fell.  There  is  some  diversity  of  statement  as  to  the 
year  in  which  the  Turks  commenced  their  wars  in 
eastern  Asia ;  but  the  result,  in  every  case,  comes 
very  near  to  that  stated  above.  And  surely  it  is  a 
most  remarkable  result,  going  to  assure  us  of  the 
accuracy  of  the  prediction  which  contains  it,  and  of 
the  method  of  interpreting  this  prediction. 

The  horses  in  this  terrific  struggle  are  described 
in  the  prophecy,  with  their  'breast-plates  of  fire,  their 
heads  like  lions,  and  brimstone  and  smoke  and  fire 
pouring  forth  from  their  mouths.'  Of  course,  they 
are  not  literal  horses,  but  symbols  of  events  taking 
place  during  the  war.  It  is  remarkable  that  fire- 
arms and  cannon  were  first  used  in  the  assault  upon 
Constantinople ;  and  this  is  supposed  to  be  indicated 
by  the  fire  and  smoke  and  brimstone  which  seemed 
to  issue  from  the  horses'  mouths. 

The  design  of  this  terrible  infliction  upon  the 
heathen  and  nominally  Christian  people  of  western 
Asia,  was  to  humble  them,  and  bring  them  to  con- 


108  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

sideration  and  repentance.  But  no  such  good  re- 
sult flowed  from  it ;  and  so  it  was  predicted  in  the 
verses  following :  '  The  rest  of  the  men  which  were 
not  killed  by  these  plagues,  yet  repented  not  of  the 
works  of  their  hands,  that  they  should  not  worship 
devils,  and  idols  of  gold,  and  silver,  and  brass,  and 
stone,  and  of  wood;  which  neither  can  see,  nor  hear, 
nor  walk :  neither  repented  they  of  their  murders, 
nor  of  their  sorceries,  nor  of  their  fornication,  nor  of 
their  thefts'  (Rev.  ix.  20,  21) 


liEVELATION,  CHAPTER  X.  109 


CHAPTER   YIIL 

CHRIST  APPEARS  AS  A  MIGHTY  ANGEL  :   THE  END 

NOT  YET. 
REVELATION,  CHAP.  X. 

*  A  ND  I  saw  another  mighty  angel  come  down 
XJL  from  heaven,  clothed  with  a  cloud:  and  a 
rainbow  was  upon  his  head,  and  his  face  was 
as  it  were  the  sun,  and  his  feet  as  pillars  of  fire ; 
and  he  had  in  his  hand  a  little  book  open :  and  he 
set  his  right  foot  npon  the  sea,  and  his  left  foot 
on  the  earth,  and  he  cried  v/ith  a  loud  voice,  as 
when  a  lion  roareth  .  and  when  he  had  cried,  seven 
thunders  uttered  their  voices.  And  when  the  seven 
thunders  had  uttered  their  voices,  I  was  about  to 
write  :  and  I  heard  a  voice  from  heaven  saying  unto 
me.  Seal  up  those  things  which  the  seven  thunders 
uttered,  and  write  them  not.  And  the  angel  which 
I  saw  stand  upon  the  sea  and  upon  the  earth  lifted 
up  his  hand  to  heaven,  and  sware  by  him  that  liveth 
for  ever  and  ever,  who  created  heaven,  and  the 
things  that  therein  are,  and  the  earth,  and  the 
things  that  therein  are,  and  the  sea,  and  the  things 
wliich  are  therein,  that  there  should  be  time  no 


110  THE  APOCjLLYFSE  EXPLAINED: 

longer,  (ovxeti  laTaij  should  not  be  yet.)  But  in 
the  days  of  the  voice  of  the  seventh  angel,  when  he 
shall  begin  to  sound,  the  mystery  of  God  should 
be  finished,  as  He  hath  declared  to  His  servants, 
the  prophets.  And  the  voice  which  I  heard  from 
heaven  spake  unto  me  again,  and  said,  Go  and  take 
the  little  book  which  is  open  in  the  hand  of  the 
:angel  which  standeth  upon  the  sea  and  upon  the 
earth.  And  I  went  unto  the  angel,  and  said  unto 
him,  Give  me  the  little  book.  And  he  said  unto  me, 
Take  it,  and  eat  it  up  ;  and  it  shall  make  thy  belly 
bitter,  but  it  shall  be  in  thy  mouth  sweet  as  honey. 
And  I  took  the  little  book  out  of  the  angel's  hand, 
and  ate  it  up ;  and  it  was  in  my  mouth  sweet  as 
honey:  and  as  soon  as  I  had  eaten  it,  my  belly 
was  bitter.  And  he  said  unto  me,  Thou  must  pro- 
phesy again  before  many  peoples,  and  nations,  and 
tongues,  and  kings '  (Rev.  x.). 

This  glorious  vision  is  an  episode  thrown  into 
the  continuous  train  of  prophecy.  The  blast  of  the 
sixth  angel  was  not  finished  with  the  fall  of  Con- 
stantinople and  the  Eastern  empire.  Probably  it 
is  not  finished  now.  The  dominion  of  the  Turks — 
the  leading  subject  of  it — is  not  yet  overthrown, 
though  apparently  verging  to  its  end.  In  the 
midst  of  events  portended  by  the  sixth  trumpet, 
the  sublime  vision  of  this  tenth  chapter  intervenes. 

A   mighty    angel    comes    down    from    heaven. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  X.  Ill 

*  clothed  with  a  cloud,  and  a  rainbow  about  his 
head:  his  face  was  as  it  were  the  sun,  and  his  feet 
as  pillars  of  fire.'  Who  is  this  mighty  angel  ?  After 
considering  the  various  opinions  which  have  been 
offered  in  answer  to  this  question,  I  agree  with 
Hengstenberg,  that  this  angel  is  none  other  than 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Nor  is  it  a  valid  objection 
to  this  conclusion,  that  He  is  here  called  angel. 
The  word  angel  signifies  messenger;  and  in  exe- 
cuting His  mediatorial  work,  Christ  often  appears 
and  acts  as  the  messenger  of  God,  and  is  not  un- 
frequently  called  an  angel.  ^  He  is,  as  it  seems  to 
me,  called  so  here. 

My  first  proof  of  the  Divine  character  of  this 
angel  is  found  in  the  transcendant  glory  of  his 
appearance, — so  very  like  to  that  of  his  appear- 
ance to  John,  as  recorded  in  the  first  chapter 
of  the  Revelation, — transcending  in  some  parti- 
culars the  glory  even  of  that  epiphany.  Then  the 
planting  of  his  right  foot  upon  the  sea,  and  his 
left  foot  on  the  earth,  reveals  him  as  the  rightful 
proprietor  and  sovereign  of  the  world.  And  the 
solemn  oath  which  he  takes,  shows  him  to  be  one 
who  has  the  times  and  the  seasons  in  his  own 
power,  to  prolong,  curtail,  and  decide,  according 
to  his  pleasure. 

And  the  little  book  which  he  held  in  his  hand, 
^  See  Gen.  xvi.  7-13  ;  xxi.  7-22  ;   xi.  15. 


112  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

what  are  we  to  tliiiik  of  that  ?  This  I  riuderstand 
to  be  the  remaining,  nnfulfillecl  j)art  of  the  book  of 
prophecy,  which  he  took  out  of  the  hand  of  Him 
that  sat  upon  the  throne,  in  the  early  part  of  the 
Kevelation  (chap.  v.  7).  The  seals  of  this  book  had 
all  been  opened,  but  the  portents  of  the  seventh  seal, 
which  included  the  seven  trumpets,  were  not  yet 
entirely  fulfilled.  The  seventh  trumpet  had  not 
been  blown,  nor  had  the  blast  of  the  sixth  trumpet 
ceased  to  sound.  The  contents  of  the  book  which 
he  had  received  from  the  Supreme  Disposer  had 
been  chiefly  unfolded;  but  a  small  part  was  yet 
unaccomplished,  and  this  constituted  the  little  book 
which  he  still  held  in  his  hand. 

And  this  accounts  for  the  effect  which  the  eat- 
ing of  the  book  produced  upon  the  apostle.  In  his 
mouth  it  was  sweet,  but  in  his  belly  bitter.  The 
first  announcement  of  the  seventh  trumpet,  that 
the  kingdoms  of  this  world  were  all  given  to  Christ, 
would  be  sweet  indeed.  But  wlien  the  eater  came 
to  understand  how  many  ages  of  conflict  and  per- 
secution were  yet  to  precede  the  sounding  of  the 
seventh  trumpet,  and  what  commotions  and  revo- 
lutions would  accompany  it,  the  sweet  was  tm-ned 
into  bitter. 

But  why  was  this  glorious  vision  interjected 
here?  Why  did  the  Son  of  God  condescend  to 
appear  again  as  the  Angel  of  the  Covenant,  and 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  X.  113 

swear  the  solemn  oath  contamed  in  this  chapter  ? 
I  can  thmk  of  but  one  reason,  and  that  one  is 
eminently  honourable  to  the  Saviour,  showing  His 
compassion  to  His  people,  and  His  care  for  them. 

As  early  as  the  close  of  the  first  century,  many 
excellent  Christians  w^ere  pleasing  themselves  with 
the  idea  of  the  speedy  coming  of  Christ.     He  w^as 
soon  to  come,  and  set  up  His  kingdom  in  the  world, 
and  reign  in  glory  with  His  saints.     And  this  de- 
lusion has  been  revived,  at  different  periods,  all  the 
w^ay  from  the  age    of  John  to  the  present  time. 
During  the  blast  of  the  sixth  trumpet,  some  of  the 
best  people  on  the  earth  were  deceiving  themselves 
in  this  ^vay.     This  was  the  case  with  John  Wick- 
liffe  and  his  followers, — the  Lollards,  the  Hussites, 
and  many  others.     Wickliffe  supposed  that  the  mil- 
lennium commenced  at  the  time  of  Constantino,  that, 
the  thousand  years  had  been  falfilled,  that  the  Fiencli. 
(as  he  called  him)  was  let  loose  for  a  little  season^, 
and  that  the  coming  of  Christ  to  judgment   was; 
just  at  hand.     Under  one  form  or  another,  these  ad- 
ventists  continued  down  to  the  time  of  the  Refor- 
mation.    They  were  found  in  many  of  the  reformed 
Churches,    and    even   among    our    New    England 
Fathers.       They  are  found  in  almost   every  Pro- 
testant  country   at   the   present   time.       Some  of 
them  have  been  fanatical  and  heretical,  but  many 
of  them  have  been  pious,  excellent  people,  loving 


lU  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

the  Lord  Jesus,  and  clinging  to  the  hope  of  His 
speedy  appearing.  Others  who  have  not  advanced 
so  far  as  this  have  had  their  patience  tried  by  de- 
lay. They  have  been  ready  to  say,  with  the  souls 
under  the  altar,  *  How  long,  Holy  and  True,  dost 
Thou  not  judge  and  avenge  the  sufferings  of  Thy 
people !  How  long  shall  it  be  to  the  end  of  these 
wonders ! ' 

In  compassion  for  both  these  descriptions  of 
persons,  and  to  cure  them,  if  possible,  of  their 
impatience  and  delusions,  their  Lord  presents  him- 
self in  this  most  remarkable  vision.  Standing  in 
glory  upon  the  sea  and  the  land.  He  lifts  up  His 
hand  to  heaven,  and  sweareth  by  Him  who  livctli 
for  ever  and  ever,  that  the  time  of  the  end  is  not 
yet.  But  in  the  days  of  the  voice  of  the  seventh 
angel,  when  he  shall  begin  to  sound,  then  shall  the 
mystery  of  God  be  finished,  as  He  hath  declared 
to  His  servants  the  prophets,  Let  him  that  readeth 
(or  heareth)  understand ! 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XL  115 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  TESTIMONY  OF  THE  WITNESSES — THE  SEVENTH 

TRUMPET. 
rj:VELATION,  CHAP.  XI. 

*  A  ND  there  was  given  me  a  reed  like  ■unto  a 
Jl\.  rod :  and  the  angel  stood,  saying,  Rise,  and 
measure  the  temple  of  God,  and  the  altar,  and 
them  that  worship  therein.  But  the  court  which 
is  without  the  temple  leave  out,  and  measure  it 
not ;  for  it  is  given  unto  the  Gentiles  ,•:  and  the 
holy  city  shall  they  tread  under  foot  forty  and 
two  months.  And  I  will  give  power  unto  my  two 
witnesses,  and  they  shall  prophesy  a  thousand 
two  hundred  and  threescore  days,  clothed  in  sack- 
cloth. These  are  the  two  olive-trees,  and  the  two 
candlesticks  standing  before  the  God  of  the  earth. 
And  if  any  man  will  hurt  them,  fire  proceedeth  out 
of  their  mouth,  and  devoureth  their  enemies ;  and 
if  any  man  will  hurt  them,  he  must  in  this  manner 
be  killed.  These  have  power  to  shut  heaven,  that 
it  rain  not  in  the  days  of  their  prophecy ;  and  have 
power  over  waters  to  turn  them  into  blood,  and  to 
smite  the  earth  with  plagues,  as  often  as  they  will. 


116  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

And  when  tliey  shall  have  finished  tlieh-  testimony, 
the  beast  that  ascendeth  out  of  the  bottomless  pit 
shall  make  war  against  them,  and  shall  overcome 
them,  and  kill  them.  And  their  dead  bodies  shall  lie 
in  the  street  of  the  great  city,  which  spiritually  is 
called  Sodom  and  Egypt,  where  also  our  Lord  was 
crucified.  And  they  of  the  people,  and  kindi'cds, 
and  tongues,  and  nations,  shall  see  their  dead  bodies 
three  days  and  an  half,  and  shall  not  suffer  their  dead 
bodies  to  be  put  in  graves.  And  they  that  dwell 
upon  the  earth  shall  rejoice  over  them,  and  make 
merry,  and  shall  send  gifts  one  to  another ;  because 
these  two  prophets  tormented  them  that  dwelt  on 
the  earth.  And  after  three  days  and  a  half  the 
Spirit  of  life  from  God  entered  into  tliem,  and 
they  stood  upon  their  feet ;  and  great  fear  fell  upon 
them  that  saw  them.  And  they  heard  a  great  voice 
from  heaven  saying  unto  them,  Come  up  hither. 
And  they  ascended  up  to  heaven  in  a  cloud ;  and 
their  enemies  beheld  them.  iVnd  the  same  hour  was 
a  great  earthquake,  and  the  tenth  part  of  the  city 
fell,  and  in  the  earthquake  were  slain  of  men  seven 
thousand:  and  the  remnant  were  affrighted,  and 
gave  glory  to  the  God  of  heaven'  (Rev.  xi.  1-13). 
By  interpreting  parts  of  this  chapter  literally, 
some  authors  have  inferred  that  Jerusalem  and  the 
Jewish  temple  were  still  standing ;  and,  conse- 
quently, that  the  Apocalypse  must  have  been  writ- 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XL  117 

* 

ten  at  a  mucli  earlier  period  than  we  have  supposed. 
But  there  is  no  real  ground  for  such  a  supposition. 
The  language  of  the  chapter  before  us  is  symbolical, 
— much  of  it  certainly,  and  probably  all.  The 
temple  and  the  altar  spoken  of  in  the  first  verse 
cannot  be  the  literal  temple  at  Jerusalem.  Who 
can  suppose  that  John,  on  the  isle  of  Patmos,  was 
required  to  take  a  reed,  and  go  and  measure  the 
literal  temple  at  Jerusalem  ?  How  could  he  do  it  ? 
And  why  should  he  be  required  to  do  it,  since  the 
measure  of  the  temple  was  accurately  known  ?  Xo  ; 
the  temple  here  spoken  of  is  a  symbolic  temple — 
the  symbol  of  God's  Church ;  and  the  command  to 
measure  it  is  a  command  to  survey  and  estimate  it, 
— to  see  how  many  belong  to  the  real  Church  of 
God,  and  how  many  are  to  be  passed  by  and  ex- 
cluded. 

The  command  to  leave  out  of  his  estimate  the 
court  without  the  temple,  indicates  that  a  large  part 
of  what  had  been  considered  as  belonging  to  the 
Christian  Church  was  to  be  regarded  in  this  light 
no  longer.  They  are  left  out  and  abandoned.  In- 
stead of  belonging  to  Christ,  they  have  become  anti- 
Christ.  And  this  I  regard  as  a  very  important 
point  in  the  history  of  the  Church  of  Rome.  For 
centuries  it  had  been  a  Christian  Church,  as  holy  as 
any  other  in  the  first  ages  ;  but  now  it  has  become 
so  corrupt  as  to  forfeit  its  standing  in  the  Church 


118  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

of  God,  and  is  left  out  of  it.  When  "was  this  fatal 
transition  made  ?     When  did  it  occur  ? 

I  will  not  undertake  to  answer  these  questions 
now.  They  will  come  up  again  in  the  progress  of 
this  discussion.  But  from  the  period  of  this  occur- 
rence, whenever  it  may  have  taken  place,  the  cause 
of  truth  and  holiness  was  to  be  trodden  under  foot 
in  that  apostate  Church,  and  God's  faithful  wit- 
nesses were  to  prophesy  in  sackcloth  for  the  space 
of  forty-two  months,  or  twelve  hundred  and  sixty 
days.  The  language  here  is  undoubtedly  pro- 
phetical, and  the  period  indicated  (which  is  the 
same  in  both  cases)  is  twelve  hundred  and  sixty 
years. 

There  Avill  be  witnesses  for  God  and  truth  dur- 
ing all  this  dark  peiiod,  but  they  will  be  few.  They 
are  the  olive  trees  and  candlesticks  for  the  lighting 
of  the  world ;  and  their  light,  feeble  and  flickering 
though  it  may  be  at  some  periods,  will  continue. 
Great  power  is  given  to  these  despised  witnesses, — 
likened  to  that  wielded  by  Moses  and  the  old  pro- 
phets,— not  literally  miraculous  like  theirs, — but 
as  salutary  and  effective  to  those  who  love  the 
truth,  and  as  confounding  and  ruinous  to  those  who 
reject  it.  These  witnesses  for  God  were  found  at 
their  posts  through  all  the  middle  ages, — the  Pauli- 
cians,  the  Cathari,  the  Culdees,  the  Lollards,  the 
Albigenses,  the  Waldenses, — ^holding  up  the  light 


IIEVELATION,  CHAPTER  XL  119 

of  truth,  and  braving  the  hatred  and  persecution 
of  the  world. 

And  when  they  shall  have  finished  (rfXeo-wcrf. 
perfected)  their  testimony  in  sackcloth ;  when  they 
shall  have  continued  it  till  the  object  of  it  is  accom- 
plished, and  the  time  has  come  for  a  change,^  then 
the  beast  from  the  bottomless  pit, — of  whom  we 
now  hear  for  the  first  time  in  the  Revelation,  but 
of  whom  we  shall  hear  much  in  the  following 
chapters, — shall  make  war  upon  them,  and  kill 
them,  and  they  shall  lie  unburied  '  in  the  street  of 
that  great  city  which  is  spiritually  called  Sodom 
and  Egypt,  where  also  our  Lord  was  crucified, '" — 
referring  not,  perhaps,  to  any  particular  city,  but 
to  those  parts  of  the  dominion  of  Rome  which  had 
been  most  frequently  reddened  with  martyrs'  blood. 
And  there  shall  be  great  rejoicing  over  them  among 
the  wdcked  of  the  earth,  because  they  can  no  longer 
terrify  or  trouble  them  with  their  testimony. 

But  in  the  midst  of  these  rejoicings,  the,  hated 
witnesses  are  raised  to  life.  And  not  only  so,  they 
are  exalted  to  a  position  they  never  before  occupied 

^  The  language  here  does  not  imply  that  the  witnesses  are  to  con- 
tinue their  testimony  in  sackcloth  to  the  end  of  the  twelve  hundred 
and  sixty  years,  or  until  the  sounding  of  the  seventh  trumpet.  Time 
must  be  furnished  toward  the  close  of  their  first  testimony  in  which 
they  are  to  be  slain,  to  be  raised  to  life,  to  be  exalted  above  the  power 
of  their  enemies,  and  to  pursue  their  work  in  a  more  peaceful  way. 

2  Dean  Alford  and  Hengstenberg  both  show  conclusively  that  the 
literal  Jwusalem  is  not  intended  here. 


120  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

— where  their  enemies  can  afflict  and  destroy  tlicm 
no  more. 

These  witnesses,  I  have  said  ah-eady,  are  the 
faithful  who,  through  all  the  years  of  Papal  dark- 
ness, did  not  cease  to  protest  against  existing  evils, 
and  lift  up  their  voice  like  a  trumpet  to  reprove 
them.  And  as  the  time  of  their  testimony  in  sack- 
cloth drew  to  a  close,  they  were  assailed  with  un- 
wonted violence.  Their  enemies  were  determined 
to  silence  them,  or  destroy  them.  Wars  were  urged 
against  them ;  crusades  were  got  up  for  their  de- 
struction; the  Inquisition  was  ever  at  its  work, 
and  in  the  short  period  of  four  years  is  said  to 
have  destroyed  one  Imndred  and  fifty  thousand 
persons. 

At  length,  as  we  approach  the  time  of  the  Pro- 
testant Reformation,  Rome  ventured  to  proclaim 
that  her  work  of  destruction  was  accomplished.  At 
the  ninth  session  of  the  Council  of  the  Latcran,  held 
in  Rome  in  the  year  1513,  a  remarkable  proclamation 
was  made,  affirming  that  all  opposition  to  the  Papal 
power  had  now  ceased.  The  orator  of  the  session 
ascended  the  pulpit,  and  affirmed :  '  There  is  an  end 
of  resistance  to  the  Papal  rule  and  religion !  Op- 
posers  there  exist  no  more !  The  whole  body  of 
Christianity  is  now  seen  to  be  subject  to  its  rightful 
Head ' — the  Pope. 

It  is  probably  from  this  time  that  the  three  days 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XL  121 

and  a  half,  or  the  three  years  and  a  half,  during 
which  the  dead  bodies  of  the  witnesses  remained 
iinhnried,  and  were  exposed  to  public  gaze  and  de- 
rision, are  to  be  reckoned.  And  it  is  wonderful  to 
record,  that  in  three  years  and  a  half  from  the  date 
of  the  above  proclamation — that  is,  in  1517,  Luther 
commenced  his  attack  upon  Roman  Indulgences, 
life  entered  again  the  bodies  of  the  dead  witnesses, 
and  the  Protestant  Reformation  commenced. 

This  was  followed  by  '  a  great  earthquake,' — a 
great  moral  and  spiritual  revolution — which  shook 
the  Papal  power  to  its  centre,  and  emancipated  half 
Europe.  This,  too,  raised  the  dead  witnesses  above 
the  rage  and  the  power  of  their  enemies.  They  tes- 
tified no  longer,  as  before,  in  sackcloth  and  in  fear 
of  their  lives,  but  lifted  up  their  voices  in  the  higli 
places  of  the  earth,  and  in  the  palaces  of  kings. 
'  And  many  were  terrified,  and  gave  glory  to  the 
God  of  heaven.'  Yes,  many  were  converted  from 
the  error  of  their  ways,  and  from  being  the  enemies 
of  Christ  and  His  people,  became  His  friends. 

'  The  second  woe  is  past ;  and,  behold,  the  third 
woe  Cometh  quickly '  (Rev.  xi.  14). 

The  Seventh  Trumpet. 

*And  the  seventh  angel  sounded;  and  there 
were  great  voices  in  heaven,  saying.  The  king- 
doms of  this  world  are  become  the  kingdoms  of  our 
Lord,  and  of  His  Christ;  and  He  shall  reign  for 

Q 


122  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

ever  and  ever.  And  tlie  four  and  twenty  elders, 
which  sat  before  God  on  their  seats,  fell  upon  their 
faces,  and  worshi]3ped  God,  saying.  We  give  Thee 
thanks,  0  Lord  God  Almighty,  which  art,  and  wast, 
and  art  to  come ;  because  Thou  hast  taken  to  Thee 
Thy  great  power,  and  hast  reigned.  And  the  nations 
were  angry,  and  Thy  wrath  is  come,  and  the  time  of 
the  dead,  that  they  should  be  judged,  and  that 
Thou  shouldest  give  reward  unto  Tliy  servants  the 
prophets,  and  to  the  saints,  and  them  that  fear 
Thy  name,  small  and  great ;  and  shouldest  destroy 
them  which  destroy  the  earth.  And  the  temple  of 
God  was  opened  in  heaven,  and  there  was  seen  in 
His  temple  the  ark  of  His  testament  :  and  there 
were  lightnings,  and  voices,  and  thunderings,  and 
an  earthquake,  and  great  hail*  (Rev.  xi.  15—19). 

We  have  here  the  winding  up  of  the  first  seiies 
of  visions  in  the  Revelation — those  contained  in  the 
book  which  the  Lamb  took  out  of  the  hand  of  Him 
who  sat  upon  the  throne,  as  recorded  in  the  fifth 
chapter.  The  Seven  Seals  have  all  been  opened, 
and  the  last  of  the  Seven  Trumpets  contained 
under  the  seventh  seal  has  been  blown. 

This  introduces  us  to   scenes   which   are   yet 

in    the    future.     It   closes    the    testimony  of   the 

witnesses,   in  the   sense  of  the   preceding  vision. 

They  had  been  slain,   and  raised  from  the  dead, 

and  exalted  to  a  state  of  comparative  security  at 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XL  123 

the  time  of  tlie  Keformation ;  but  now  their  war- 
fare is  ended;  their  triumph  is  complete.  The 
twelve  hundred  and  sixty  years,  so  often  spoken 
of  in  the  Kevelation,  is  closed,  and  the  millennial 
period  of  the  Church  is  ushered  in,-  when  '  the  king- 
dom, and  dominion,  and  greatness  of  the  kingdoms 
under  the  whole  heaven  shall  be  given  to  the  people 
of  the  saints  of  the  Most  High.' 

This  seventh  trumpet,  though  a  joyful  one  to  the 
people  of  God,  is  called  a  woe-trumpet,  on  account  of 
its  bearing  upon  His  enemies ;  portending  the  de- 
struction of  their  power,  the  defeat  of  all  their  plans, 
and  their  subjection,  for  a  long  period,  to  the  rule 
of  Christ  and  His  people.  '  The  time  of  the  dead "" 
— the  spiritually  dead — '  is  come,  that  they  should 
be  judged,  and  that  ....  Thou  shouldest  destroy 
them  which  destroy  the  earth.' 

This  is  followed  by  one  of  those  out-bursting 
exclamations  of  gratitude  and  praise,  which  are  so 
often  sounded  forth  in  heaven,  in  celebrating  the 
victories  of  God  and  the  Lamb.  '  We  give  Thee 
thanks,  0  Lord  God  Almighty,  which  art,  and  wast, 
and  art  to  come :  because  Thou  hast  taken  to  Thee 
Thy  great  power,  and  hast  reigned.'  and  hast  given 
'  reward  unto  Thy  servants  the  prophets,  and  to  the 
saints,  and  to  them  that  fear  Thy  name,  small  and 
great.' 

In  response  to  this  loyal,    grateful   song,  the 


124:  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

temple  of  God  was  opened  in  heaven — opened  even 
to  the  holy  of  holies,  so  that  the  ark  of  the  tes- 
tament was  seen :  '  x\nd  there  were  lightnings,  and 
thunderings,  and  an  earthquake  and  great  hail.' 
These  symhols  portend  the  great  changes  and 
revolutions  that  must  take  place  on  the  earth, 
when  all  the  wicked  are  converted  or  destroyed, 
and  the  kingdom  and  dominion  are  given  to  the 
saints. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XII.  125 


CHAPTER  X.  ■. 

THE  MYSTICAL  WOMAN  AND  HER  SEED. 
EEVELATION,  CHAP.  XII. 

*   A  ND  there  appeared  a  great  wonder  in  lieaven  ; 

J-JL  a  woman  clothed  with  the  sun,  and  the 
moon  mider  her  feet,  and  upon  her  head  a  crown  of 
twelve  stars :  And  she,  being  with  child,  cried, 
travailing  in  birth,  and  pained  to  be  delivered. 
And  there  appeared  another  wonder  in  heaven ;  and 
behold  a  great  red  dragon,  having  seven  heads  and 
ten  horns,  and  seven  crowns  upon  his  heads.  And 
his  tail  drew  the  third  part  of  the  stars  of  heaven, 
and  did  cast  them  to  the  earth :  and  the  dragon 
stood  before  the  woman  which  was  ready  to  be 
delivered,  for  to  devour  her  child  as  soon  as  it 
was  born.  And  she  brought  forth  a  man-child, 
who  was  to  rule  all  nations  with  a  rod  of  iron : 
And  her  child  was  caught  up  unto  God,  and  to  His 
throne.  And  the  woman  fled  into  the  wilderness, 
where  she  hath  a  place  prepared  of  God,  that  they 
should  feed  her  there  a  thousand  two  hundred  and 
threescore  days. 


126       '        THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

'And  tliere  was  war  in  heaven:  MicTiael  and 
liis  angels  fought  agamst  the  dragon;  and  the 
dragon  fought  and  his  angels,  and  prevailed  not ; 
neither  was  their  place  found  any  more  in  heaven. 
And  the  great  dragon  was  cast  out,  that  old  ser- 
pent, called  the  Devil,  and  Satan,  which  deceivetli 
the  whole  world  :  he  was  cast  out  into  the  earth, 
and  his  angels  were  cast  out  with  him.  And  I 
heard  a  loud  voice  saying  in  heaven,  Now  is  come 
salvation,  and  strength,  and  the  kingdom  of  our 
God,  and  the  power  of  His  Christ :  for  the  accuser 
of  om*  brethren  is  cast  down,  which  accused  them 
before  our  God  day  and  night.  And  they  over- 
came him  by  the  blood  of  the  Lamb,  and  by  the 
word  of  their  testimony ;  and  they  loved  not  their 
lives  unto  the  death.  Therefore  rejoice,  ye  hea- 
vens, and  ye  that  dwell  in  them. 

'  Woe  to  the  inhabitcrs  of  the  earth  and  of  the 
sea !  for  the  devil  is  come  down  unto  you,  having 
great  wrath,  because  he  knoweth  that  he  hath  but 
a  short  time. 

'  And  when  the  dragon  saw  that  he  was  cast  unto 
the  earth,  he  persecuted  the  woman  which  brought 
forth  the  man-child.  And  to  the  woman  were  given 
two  wings  of  a  great  eagle,  that  she  might  fly  into 
the  wilderness,  into  her  place,  where  she  is  nourished 
for  a  time,  and  times,  and  half  a  time' — three  years 
and  an  half,  or  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  days — 


IIEVELATION,  CHAPTER  XII .  127 

'  from  the  face  of  the  serpent.  And  the  serpent  cast 
out  of  his  mouth  water  as  a  flood,  after  the  woman, 
that  he  might  cause  her  to  be  carried  away  of  the 
flood.  And  the  earth  helped  the  woman  ;  and  the 
earth  opened  her  mouth,  and  swallowed  up  the 
flood  which  the  dragon  cast  out  of  his  mouth.  And 
the  dragon  was  wroth  with  the  woman,  and  went 
to  make  war  with  the  remnant  of  her  seed,  which 
keep  the  commandments  of  God,  and  have  the  tes- 
timony of  Jesus  Christ '  (Rev.  xii.). 

Having  closed  the  first  series  of  visions  in  the 
Apocalypse — those  connected  with  the  book  of  seven 
seals — we  now  enter  upon  a  consideration  of  other 
visions, — some  of  them  running  back  and  covering 
a  part  of  the  ground  over  which  we  have  already 
passed. 

In  this  twelfth  chapter,  John  has  a  vision,  the 
scene  of  which  is  laid  in  the  visible  heavens — the 
region  of  the  sun,  moon,  and  stars — and  not,  as 
before,  in  the  celestial  heavens.  He  sees  a  royally 
attired  woman,  bathed  as  it  were  in  the  light  of  the 
sun,  with  the  moon  under  her  feet,  and  twelve  stars, 
like  a  coronal,  encircling  her  head.  She  is  in  travail, 
and  brings  forth  a  son. 

This  woman  and  her  seed,  midoubtedly,  repre- 
sents the  Chm-ch  of  Christ,  looking  back  to  its  origin 
in  the  first  ages.  Her  progeny  is  in  peril  before  its 
birth ;  for  there  is  crouched  very  near  her  '  a  great 


128  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

red  dragon,  having  seven  heads  and  ten  horns.'  He 
is  a  fearful  monster,  lying  along  the  sky,  and  seem- 
ing to  beat  down,  with  the  thrash  of  his  tail,  a  third 
part  of  the  stars  of  heaven.  He  is  watching  the 
travailing  woman,  and  waiting  to  destroy  her  chikl 
as  soon  as  it  is  born. 

This  shows  the  perils  of  the  Chnrch  of  Christ 
in  its  early  history,  and  the  watchful  intent  of  the 
powers  of  darkness  to  destroy  it ;  for  this  great  red 
dragon  is  expressly  interpreted  to  be  '  that  old  ser- 
pent, called  the  Devil,  and  Satan.'  But  he  is  foiled 
in  his  attempt  to  seize  and  destroy  the  child.  The 
babe  is  instantly  taken  to  a  place  of  security,  and 
the  mother  flies  into  the  wilderness,  where  a  place 
is  prepared  for  her,  and  where  she  is  to  be  protected 
and  nourished  for  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  days, 
or  years, — the  same  period  in  which  the  witnesses 
are  said  to  have  borne  their  testimony. 

Defeated  in  his  designs  upon  the  early  Church, 
Satan  and  his  legions  now  engage  in  open  conflict 
"vvith  the  archangel  ^lichael  and  his  legions.  John 
saw  this  conflict  in  the  visible  heavens, — much  like 
one  which  is  said  to  have  been  witnessed  over  Jeru- 
salem, just  previous  to  its  overthrow  by  Titus.-^  Of 
course,  the  whole  scene  was  emblematic  and  vision- 
ary, showing  the  deep  interest  which  invisible  beings, 
good  and  bad,  feel  in  the  destinies  of  men ;  some 

'  See  Tacitus,  Book  v.  sect.  13. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XII.  129 

striving  for  their  salvation,  and  others  as  intently, 
for  their  destruction. 

In  this  conflict  the  dragon  is  defeated,  driven 
out  of  the  visible  heavens,  and  cast  down  to  the 
earth.  Still,  his  hatred  of  the  mystical  woman,  the 
Church,  is  not  abated.  He  pursues  her  into  the 
place  of  her  retirement,  and  because  he  cannot  over- 
take her,  he  pours  forth  after  her  a  flood  of  water  to 
destroy  her.  But  her  Almighty  protector  is  pre- 
pared for  this  attempt.  He  opens  chasms  in  the 
affrighted  earth,  which  swallow  up  the  rushing 
waters,  and  the  Church  is  safe.  She  is  protected 
and  nourished  for  the  long  period  above  stated, — 
the  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  years. 

And  now,  what  more  instructive  parable  could 
have  been  invented  to  set  forth  the  hatred  of  wicked 
beings,  satanic  and  human,  to  the  Church  of  Christ, 
with  their  persistent  efforts  to  destroy  it,  and  at 
the  same  time  to  signify  its  safety  in  the  hands  of 
its  great  Deliverer?  He  thwarts  every  eflbrt,  de- 
feats every  design  for  its  destruction,  until,  in  the 
fulness  of  time,  in  the  end  of  these  wonders,  it  is 
brought  out  into  a  large  place,  and  its  final  victory 
is  secured. 

It  is  said  in  the  prediction,  that  the  Church  will 
one  day  rule  the  guilty  nations  '  with  a  rod  of  iron,* 
or  an  iron  sceptre.  This  phraseology,  as  we  find  it 
in  the  Scriptures,  does  not  imply  cruelty  or  injustice, 


IVBESi'iTJI 


130  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

but  merely  firmness,  invincibleness,  and  integrity. 
It  is  applied,  in  more  than  one  instance,  to  the  rule 
of  the  Messiah  (Rev.  xix.  15 ;  Ps.  ii.  9). 

We  have,  mixed  up  with  the  triumphs  of  this 
^'ision,  as  of  the  last,  loud  voices  in  heaven,  saying, 
'  Now  is  come  salvation,  and  strength,  and  the 
kingdom  of  our  God,  and  the  power  of  His  Christ ; 
for  the  accuser  of  our  brethren  is  cast  down.  .  .  ." 
And  they  overcame  him  by  the  blood  of  the  Lamb, 
and  by  the  word  of  their  testimony ;  and  they  loved 
not  their  lives  unto  the  death'  (Rev.  xii.  10,  11). 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XIIL  131 


CHAPTER   XL 

RISE  AND  DESCRIPTION  OP  THE  PAPAL  BEASTS. 
REVELATION,  CHAP.  XIII. 

*  A  ND  I  stood  upon  the  sand  of  the  sea,  and  saw 
-LX  a  beast  rise  up  out  of  the  sea,  having  seven 
heads  and  ten  horns,  and  upon  his  horns  ten  crov^ns, 
and  upon  his  heads  the  name  of  blasphemy.  And 
the  beast  which  I  saw  was  Hke  unto  a  leopard,  and 
his  feet  were  as  the  feet  of  a  bear,  and  his  mouth  as 
the  mouth  of  a  lion :  and  the  dragon  gave  him  his 
power,  and  his  seat,  and  great  authority.  And  I 
saw  one  of  his  heads  as  it  were  wounded  to  death ; 
and  his  deadly  wound  was  healed :  and  all  the  world 
wondered  after  the  beast.  And  they  worshipped 
the  dragon  which  gave  power  unto  the  beast :  and 
they  worshipped  the  beast,  saying,  Who  is  like  unto 
the  beast  ?  who  is  able  to  make  war  with  him  ?  And 
there  was  given  unto  him  a  mouth  speaking  great 
things,  and  blasphemies  •  and  power  was  given  unto 
him  to  continue  forty  and  two  months.  And  he 
opened  his  mouth  in  blasphemy  against  God,  to 
blaspheme  His  name,  and  His  tabernacle,  and  them 


132  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

that  dwell  in  heaven.  And  it  was  given  unto  him 
to  make  war  with  the  saints,  and  to  overcome  them : 
and  power  was  given  him  over  all  kindreds,  and 
tongues,  and  nations.  And  all  that  dwell  upon  the 
earth  shall  worship  him,  whose  names  are  not 
written  in  the  book  of  life  of  the  Lamb  slain  from 
the  foundation  of  the  world.  If  any  man  have  an 
ear,  let  him  hear.  He  that  leadeth  into  captivity, 
shall  go  into  captivity:  he  that  killeth  with  the 
sword,  must  be  killed  with  the  sword.  Here  is  the 
patience  and  the  faith  of  the  saints'  (Rev.  xiii.  1—10). 

The  beast  of  the  Apocalypse  was  incidentally 
mentioned  in  chap.  vii.  11 ;  but  here  he  is  fully  pre- 
sented and  described.  A  beast,  in  prophetic  lan- 
guage, represents  a  tyrannical,  idolatrous  kingdom, 
or  power.  Such  were  the  several  beasts  which 
Daniel  saw  rising  up  from  the  sea.  The  kingdom 
of  God  and  of  Christ  is  never  set  before  us  under 
the  symbol  of  a  beast. 

As  John  stood  on  the  sea  shore  of  Patmos,  he 
'  saw  a  beast  rise  up  out  of  the  sea,  having  seven 
heads  and  ten  horns,  and  upon  his  horns  ten  crowns, 
and  upon  his  heads  the  names  of  blasphemy,'  or 
blasphemous  names. 

The  seven  heads  and  ten  horns  mark  this  beast 
as  Rome,  in  its  civil  secular  power.  The  seven 
heads  denote  the  seven  hills  on  which  Rome  was 
built,  and  the  seven  forms  of  government  which 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XIII.  133 

successively  prevailed  there.  The  first  six  of  these, 
according  to  Tacitus,  were  Kings,  Consuls,  Dicta- 
tors, Decemvirs,  Military  Tribunes,  and  Emperors ; 
five  of  which  had  passed  away  before  the  time  of 
this  prophecy;  and  the  sixth  form,  the  Imperial, 
was  then  in  its  glory.  But  this,  before  the  fulfil- 
ment of  the  prophecy,  had  been  wounded  to  death, 
and  the  deadly  wound  had  been  healed. 

Its  wounding  and  healing  are  thus  set  forth 
in  history.  Rome  ceased  to  be  an  empire  in  the 
year  476,  when  Augustulus,  the  last  of  the  em- 
perors, was  conquered  by  Odoacer,  king  of  the 
Goths.  From  this  period  Rome  continued  to  be 
subject  to  foreign  princes  for  about  three  hundred 
years.  During  a  part  of  this  time  it  was  reduced 
to  a  mere  dukedom,  and  made  subject  to  the  Exarch 
of  Ravenna.  This,  surely,  was  a  wounding  to 
death  of  the  sixth  or  imperial  head  of  Rome. 

In  the  latter  part  of  the  sixth  century  the  Lom- 
bards broke  into  Italy,  possessed  themselves  of  a 
considerable  part  of  it,  and  established  a  kingdom  at 
Pavia.  As  they  increased  in  ambition  and  strength, 
they  strove  to  become  masters  of  Ravenna  and 
Rome.  In  these  circumstances,  the  Popes  of  Rome 
applied,  first  to  Pepin,  king  of  the  Franks,  and 
afterwards  to  his  son,  Charlemagne,  for  help.  The 
Franks  came  into  Italy  at  two  separate  times, 
drove  out  the  Lombards,  and  gave  their  dominions 


134  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED 

to  the  Pope.  They  thus  constituted  the  bishop  of 
Rome  a  monarch.  He  was  the  sovereign  of  Rome, 
and  of  a  considerable  part  of  Italy ;  and  here  was 
the  ongin  of  the  temporal  dominions  of  the  Pope 
(of  which  he  has  recently  been  divested).  Here 
was  the  healing  of  the  wounded  imperial  head ;  the 
head  was  restored  in  another  form,  and  it  continued 
to  be  a  reigning  power  for  the  next  thousand  years. 

But  the  beast  which  John  saw  had  not  only 
seven  heads,  but  ten  crowned  horns.  These  signify 
the  ten  kingdoms  into  which,  on  its  being  broken 
up,  the  western  Roman  empire  was  divided. 

It  follows  that  the  beast  which  John  saw  rising 
out  of  the  sea  was  not  Pagan  Rome,  nor  imperial 
Rome,  but  Papal  Rome.  It  was  Rome  after  its  im- 
perial head  had  been  wounded  to  death  by  the 
incursions  of  the  Goths — after  it  had  been  divided 
into  ten  separate  governments  or  kingdoms — and 
after  its  deadly  wound  had  been  healed  by  crown- 
ing the  Pontiff,  and  making  him  sovereign  of  a 
considerable  part  of  Italy.  It  was  this  imperial 
Papal  Rome  which  afterwards  *  opened  its  mouth  in 
blasphemy  against  God,  to  blaspheme  His  name, 
and  His  tabernacle,  and  them  that  dwell  in  heaven.' 
It  was  this  power  which  *  made  war  with  the  saints, 
and  overcame  them,'  and  which  all  the  wicked  of 
the  earth  have  been  inclined  to  follow  and  to  wor- 
ship.    And   this  same  power  was  to  continue  its 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XIII.  135 

blasphemous  course  and  bloody  career  for  forty  and 
two  months,  or  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  days,  or 
to  the  end  of  the  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  years. 
And  then  its  retribution  should  come ;  he  that  had 
led  so  many  into  captivity,  should  go  into  captivity ; 
and  he  that  had  killed  so  many  by  the  sword,  should 
be  killed  by  the  sword. 

*  And  I  beheld  another  beast  coming  up  out  of 
the  earth,  and  he  had  two  horns  like  a  lamb,  and 
he  spake  as  a  dragon:  and  he  exerciseth  all  the 
power  of  the  first  beast  before  him,  and  causeth 
the  earth,  and  them  that  dwell  therein,  to  worship 
the  first  beast,  whose  deadly  wound  was  healed. 
And  he  doeth  great  wonders,  so  that  he  maketh 
fire  come  down  from  heaven  on  the  earth  in  the 
sight  of  men,  and  deceiveth  them  that  dwell  on 
the  earth  by  the  means  of  those  miracles  which 
he  had  power  to  do  in  the  sight  of  the  beast,  say- 
ing to  them  that  dwell  on  the  earth,  that  they 
should  make  an  image  to  the  beast,  which  had  the 
wound  by  a  sword,  and  did  live.  And  he  had 
power  to  give  life  unto  the  image  of  the  beast,  that 
the  image  of  the  beast  should  both  speak,  and  cause 
that  as  many  as  would  not  worship  the  image  of 
the  beast  should  be  killed.  And  he  caused  all, 
both  small  and  great,  rich  and  poor,  free  and  bond, 
to  receive  a  mark  in  their  right  hand,  or  in  their 
foreheads  :  and  that  no  man  might  buy  or  sell,  save 


136  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

he  that  had  the  mark,  or  the  name  of  the  beast,  or 
the  number  of  his  name.  Here  is  wisdom,  Let 
him  that  hath  understanding  count  the  number  of 
the  beast:  for  it  is  the  number  of  a  man;  and 
his  number  is  six  hundred  three  score  and  six' 
(Rev.  xiii.  11-18). 

If  we  have  succeeded  in  giving  the  true  signi- 
ficance of  the  first  beast,  there  can  be  no  mistake 
in  regard  to  the  second  :  for  the  two  are  evidently 
in  close  alliance,  mutual  assistants,  working  to- 
gether for  the  same  objects  and  designs.  The 
second  beast  *  exerciseth  all  the  power  of  the  first 
beast  before  him,  and  causeth  the  earth,  and  them 
that  dwell  therein,  to  worship  the  first  beast,  whose 
deadly  wound  was  healed.'  At  the  same  time,  he 
has  not  the  same  fierce  look  as  the  first  beast. 
He  has  horns  like  a  lamb,  though  he  speaks  as  a 
dragon.  In  short,  if  the  first  beast  was  Papal 
Rome,  in  its  secular  hingly  authority,  the  second  is 
the  same  Papal  Rome  in  its  alleged  spiritual  ecclesi- 
astical authority.  The  two  things  are  distinct,  as 
here  represented,  and  yet  they  cannot  be  separated. 
They  run  on  together,  playing  into  each  others 
hands,  and  yielding  a  mutual  countenance  and  sup- 
port, until  they  come  to  the  end  of  their  career ; 
which  is,  the  end  of  the  twelve  hundi-ed  and  sixty 
years. 

The  second  beast  claims,  as  the  Church  of  Rome 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XIII.  137 

has  ever  done,  the  power  to  work  miracles.  *He 
doeth  great  wonders,  so  that  he  maketh  fire  come 
down  from  heaven  on  the  earth  in  the  sight  of  men, 
and  deceiveth  them  that  dwell  on  the  earth  by 
means  of  those  miracles  which  he  had  power  to  do 
in  the  sight  of  the  beast.'  These  are  false  miracles, 
of  course,  or  men  would  not  be  deceived  by  them. 

The  second  beast,  like  the  first,  is  a  persecutor. 
He  *  causeth  that  as  many  as  wdll  not  worship  the 
image  of  the  first  beast,  shall  be  killed.'  He  sets 
his  mark  on  all  his  followers,  and  will  not  allow 
them  to  traffic  with  those  who  have  not  the  mark, 
or  the  name  of  the  beast,  or  the  number  of  his 
name. 

As  this  device  of  Popery  is  not  so  generally 
understood  as  some  others,  I  adduce  the  following 
authorities  to  prove  it.  The  Council  of  Lateran, 
under  Pope  Alexander  III.,  has  a  severe  canon 
against  the  Albigenses  and  Waldenses.  It  anathe- 
matises any  one  '  who  should  receive  or  cherish 
them  in  his  house,  or  have  traffic  with  them.' 
The  synod  of  Tours,  under  the  same  Pope,  com- 
mands that  no  one  '  should  receive  or  assist  these 
heretics,  or  hold  any  communion  with  them  in 
selling  or  buying,  that  so,  being  deprived  of  the 
comforts  of  life,  they  may  be  compelled  to  repent 
of  the   errors   of  their  way.'     Also   Pope   Martin 

v.,  in  his   bull,  issued  after  the  Council  of  Con- 

s 


138  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

stance,  enjoins  upon  his  people  that  they  shall  not 
allow  '  the  heretics  to  have  houses  in  their  distncts, 
or  to  enter  into  any  contracts,  or  carry  on  com- 
merce, or  enjoy  the  comforts  of  humanity  with 
Christians.' 

In  short,  there  is  no  difficulty  in  seeing  what 
power  is  represented  by  this  second  beast,  even  if 
the  closing  test  proposed  by  the  writer  be  not  ap- 
plied. This  closing  test  is  the  number  of  his  name  ; 
and  this,  says  John,  '  is  six  hundred  three  score 
and  six.' 

Various  interpretations  have  been  put  upon  this 
number,  but  nearly  all  of  them  terminate  in  Rome. 
The  one  given  by  Irenoeus,  who  lived  near  the  time 
of  John,  is  as  likely  to  be  correct  as  any  other.  He 
represents  the  Greek  letters,  which,  used  as  numerals, 
amount  to  Qt^^,  as  also  forming  the  word  A  ATEINOS, 
{Latinus),  which  is  but  another  name  for  Rome. 

Others  solve  the  mystery  of  the  number  in 
another  way.  They  show  that  the  time  between 
the  vision  in  the  chapter  before  us,  and  the  com- 
mencement of  the  Pope's  kingly  authority,  was  GQG 
years. 

In  our  previous  inquiry  we  have  fomid  frequent 
mention  of  the  forty  and  two  months  and  twelve 
hundred  and  sixty  days, — which  we  understand  to 
denote  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  years, — in  which 
the  Church  is  to  be  persecuted  and  well-nigh  de- 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XIIL  139 

stroyed  by  its  enemies.  Thus,  the  holy  city  is  to 
be  trodden  under  foot  forty  and  two  months  ;  and 
the  two  witnesses  are  to  prophesy  in  sackcloth 
twelve  hundred  and  sixty  days  (chap.  xi.  2,  3). 
The  mystical  woman  is  to  flee  into  the  wilderness, 
and  be  nourished  there  twelv^e  hundred  and  sixty 
days  (chap.  xii.  6,  14).  And  the  beast  rising  out 
of  the  sea  is  to  continue  his  iron  rule  forty  and  two 
months  (chap.  xiii.  5).  So,  in  Daniel,  the  saints  of 
the  Most  High  are  to  be  given  into  the  hands  of 
the  power  represented  by  the  little  horn,  until  '  a 
time  and  times,  and  the  dividing  of  time,'  Le.^  three 
years  and  a  half — the  same  period  as  that  indicated 
in  the  Revelation  (Dan.  vii.  2b). 

The  question  arises  now,  When  did  this  long 
period  of  oppression  and  persecution  commence? 
And  when  will  it  end  ? 

It  ends,  in  every  case,  in  what  is  technically 
called  the  millennium.  And  if  we  knew  wdth  ac- 
curacy when  it  commenced,  we  might  determine 
the  date  of  the  millennium.  But  this  we  do  not 
know.  When  was  the  mystical  temple  measured, 
and  the  court  of  the  Gentiles  left  out,  and  the 
holy  city  given  up  to  be  trodden  under  foot? 
When  did  the  two  witnesses  commence  giving 
their  testimony  in  sackcloth?  When  did  the  woman 
flee  into  the  wilderness,  to  be  sheltered  and  nour- 
ished there?     When  were  the  saints  of  the  Most 


140  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

High  giveu  into  the  hands  of  Daniel's  Httle  horn  ? 
We  have  not  the  means  of  answering  definitely  any 
of  these  questions.  Perhaps  the  periods  indicated 
by  them  did  not  all  commence  together,  but  at  dif- 
ferent times,  in  the  course  of  a  century  or  more. 
Papal  Eome  did  not  rise  to  the  height  of  its  supre- 
macy all  at  once.  Its  usurpations  were  gi'adually 
assumed.  Its  abominations  were  gradually  accu- 
mulated ;  and  so  its  prostration  and  breaking  up  may 
be  gradual.  The  millennium  may  not  be  fully  in- 
troduced at  once.  It  may  come  along  gradually, 
and  in  some  of  its  stages  imperceptibly  Its  light, 
which  even  now  may  be  streaking  the  east,  will 
shine  brighter  and  bnghter  unto  the  perfect  day. 

There  is,  however,  one  of  the  Apocalyptic  sym- 
bols denoting  the  commencement  of  the  twelve 
hundred  and  sixty  years,  which,  as  it  seems  to  me, 
is  quite  definitely  fixed, — I  mean  the  rising  of  the 
beast  out  of  the  sea,  in  the  thirteenth  chapter.  This 
beast,  we  have  seen,  denotes  Papal  Rome,  in  its  po- 
litical secular  character;  and  it  arose  when  the 
Pope  received  his  temporal  dominions,  and  became 
a  king.  This  took  place  about  the  year  756 ;  and 
the  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  years  added  to  this, 
Avill  make  the  millennium  to  commence  in  about 
A.D.  2000,  or  in  the  six  thousandth  year  of  the  world. 
Meanwhile,  the  way  will  be  constantly  preparing 
for  it ;  revolutions  will  be  taking  place,   one  after 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XIII .  141 

another ;  and  the  power  of  Kome  will  be  constantly 
diminishmg.  But  at  the  time  above  mentioned, 
the  millennium,  I  trust,  may  be  fully  introduced, 
and  the  seven  thousandth  year  of  the  world  may  be 
its  great  Sabbatical  period. 

I  have  said  that  this  period — the  twelve  hundred 
and  sixty  years — in  every  mention  of  it,  terminates 
with  the  millennium.  So  also  does  that  long  series 
of  prophecies  contained  in  the  sealed  book.  The 
seven  trumpets  are  all  of  them  included  under  the 
seventh  seal ;  and  when  the  seventh  trumpet  was 
sounded,  great  voices  were  heard  in  heaven,  saying, 
*  The  kingdoms  of  this  world  are  become  the  king- 
doms of  our  Lord  and  of  His  Christ,  and  He  shall 
reign  for  ever  and  ever.'  The  millennial  period  had 
now  fully  come. 

I  may  further  add,  that  all  the  predictions  in  the 
Revelation  preceding  the  twentieth  chapter,  ter- 
minate in  the  millennium.  None  of  them  look 
beyond  it.  This  consideration  may  help  to  a  satis- 
factory solution  of  the  symbols  in  some  of  the  fol- 
lowing chapters. 


142  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 


CHAPTER  XII. 
daxiel's  vision  of  the  four  beasts. 

DANIEL,  CHAP.  WL. 

THE  resemblauce  between  some  parts  of  Daniel's 
vision  of  the  four  beasts,  recorded  in  Daniel, 
chapter  vii.,  and  John's  vision  of  the  Papal  beasts, 
of  which  we  have  spoken,  is  so  striking  and  illustra- 
tive, that  we  shall  be  indulged  in  calling  attention 
to  it  in  this  supplementary  chapter. 

The  vision  of  the  four  beasts  is,  perhaps,  the 
most  remarkable  of  Daniers  visions.  He  was  fa- 
voured with  it  in  the  first  year  of  Belshazzar,  king 
of  Babylon.  *  I  saw  in  my  vision  by  night,'  says 
Daniel,  *  and,  behold,  the  four  winds  of  the  heaven 
strove  upon  the  great  sea.  And  four  great  beasts 
came  up  from  the  sea,  diverse  one  from  another. 
The  first  was  Hke  a  lion,  and  had  eagle's  wings : 
I  beheld  till  the  w4ngs  thereof  were  plucked,  and  it 
was  lifted  up  from  the  earth,  and  made  stand  upon 
the  feet  as  a  man,  and  a  man's  heart  'was  given  to 
it.  And  behold  another  beast,  a  second,  like  to  a 
bear,  and  it  raised  up  itself  on  one  side,  and  it  had 
three  ribs  in  the  mouth  of  it  between  the  teeth  of  it; 


DANIEL'S  VISION  OF  THE  FOUR  BEASTS.     143 

and  they  said  thus  unto  it,  Arise,  devour  much  flesh. 
After  this  I  beheld,  and  lo  another,  Hke  a  leopard, 
which  had  upon  the  back  of  it  four  wings  of  a  fowl ; 
the  beast  had  also  four  heads ;  and  dominion  was 
given  to  it.  After  this  I  saw  in  the  night  visions, 
and  behold  a  fourth  beast,  dreadful  and  terrible,  and 
strong  exceedingly;  and  it  had  great  iron  teeth:  it 
devoured  and  brake  in  pieces,  and  stamped  the 
residue  with  the  feet  of  it :  and  it  was  diverse  from 
all  the  beasts  that  were  before  it ;  and  it  had  ten 
horns.  I  considered  the  horns,  and,  behold,  there 
came  up  among  them  another  little  horn,  before 
whom  there  were  three  of  the  first  horns  plucked 
up  by  the  roots  :  and,  behold,  in  this  horn  were 
eyes  like  the  eyes  of  a  man,  and  a  mouth  speaking 
great  things '  (Dan.  vii.  2—8). 

Daniel  beheld  this  terrible  beast  until  it  was 
brought  to  judgment,  was  slain,  and  his  body 
given  to  the  burning  flame.  Following  this  was 
the  universal  prevalence  of  Christ's  kingdom,  or 
what  we  call  the  millennium :  '  And  there  was  given 
Him  dominion,  and  glory,  and  a  kingdom,  that 
all  people,  nations,  and  languages,  should  serve 
Him :  His  dominion  is  an  everlasting  dominion, 
which  shall  not  pass  away,  and  His  kingdom  that 
which  shall  not  be  destroyed'  (Dan.  vii.  14). 

A  celestial  visitant  now  comes  forward,  and  in- 
terprets the  vision  to  Daniel.     The  first  three  beasts 


144  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

represent  the  first  three  great  kmgdoms  of  the 
ancient  world,  the  Babylonian,  the  Medo-Persian, 
and  the  Grecian.  The  fourth  beast  represents,  I 
can  have  no  doubt,  the  vast  empire  of  Rome.  *  This,' 
says  the  angel,  *  shall  be  diverse  from  all  kingdoms, 
and  shall  devour  the  whole  earth,  and  shall  tread  it 
down,  and  break  it  in  pieces.  And  the  ten  horns  out 
of  this  kingdom  are  ten  kings  that  shall  arise :  and 
another  shall  arise  after  them;  and  he  shall  be  diverse 
from  the  first,  and  he  shall  subdue  three  kings.  And 
he  shall  speak  great  words  against  the  Most  High, 
and  shall  wear  out  the  saints  of  the  Most  High,  and 
think  to  change  times  and  laws:  and  they' — the 
saints — '  shall  be  given  into  his  hand  until  a  time 
and  times  and  the  dividing  of  time.  But  the  judg- 
ment shall  sit,  and  they  shall  take  away  his  dominion, 
to  consume  and  destroy  it  unto  the  end.  And  the 
kingdom  and  dominion,  and  the  greatness  of  the 
kingdom  under  the  whole  heaven,  shall  be  given 
to  the  people  of  the  saints  of  the  Most  High,  whose 
kingdom  is  an  everlasting  kingdom,  and  all  do- 
minions shall  serve  and  obey  Him'  (Dan.  vii.  23—27). 
I  am  aware  that  some  interpreters  make  Daniel's 
fourth  beast  to  denote  the  four  kingdoms  growing  out 
of  the  empire  of  Alexander  the  Great,  and  the  little 
horn  to  represent  that  great  oppressor  of  the  Jews, 
Antiochus  Epiphanes.  But  to  this  supposition  there 
are  insuperable  obiections.   It  obliges  us,  in  the  first 


DANIEVS  VISION  OF  THE  FOUR  BEASTS.     145 

place,  to  separate  these  four  kingdoms  from  the  em- 
pire of  Alexander ;  whereas  Daniel  represents  them 
as  part  and  parcel  of  it,  and  organically  connected 
with  it.  *  Therefore  the  he  goat  (Alexander)  waxed 
very  great:  and  when  he  was  strong,  the  great 
horn  was  broken ;  and  from  it  came  up  four  notable 
horns,'  springing,  of  course,  out  of  the  head  of  the 
same  beast  (Dan.  viii.  8).  How  then  can  they  be 
made  to  constitute  another  beast  ? 

Then  Daniel's  fourth  beast  has  ten  horns,  which, 
on  the  Antiochian  theory,  we  fail  to  find.  The 
advocates  of  this  theory  suppose  them  to  be  the 
kings  of  Syria  and  Egypt,  who  reigned  previous  to 
Antiochus ;  but  of  these  there  were  thirteen,  and 
not  ten.  Besides,  the  little  horn  of  the  fourth 
beast  is  represented  as  springing  up  while  the 
other  horns  were  standing;  whereas  the  pre- 
decessors of  Antiochus  on  the  thrones  of  Syria  and 
Egypt  were  all  dead  before  it  appeared.  Then 
Daniel  represents  three  of  the  existing  horns  as 
plucked  up  by  the  little  horn — a  condition  which 
it  is  impossible  to  apply  to  Antiochus. 

The  reasons  for  supposing  Daniel's  fourth  beast 
to  represent  the  empire  of  Rome  are  the  follow- 
ing:— ^ 

1  Luther  says,  '  All  the  world  is  unanimous  in  this  interpretation,' 
viz.,  that  the  fourth  beast  of  Daniel  represents  the  empire  of  Rome. 
See  Auberlen  on  Daniel  and  Revelations,  p.  168. 

T 


146  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

1.  The  beast,  in  its  terrible  aspect,  and  especially 
in  the  number  of  its  horns,  is  very  like  to  the  beast 
which  John  saw  rising  out  of  the  sea,  and  which 
we  have  seen,  represents  Papal  Rome  (Rev.  xiii.  1). 

2.  Then  the  great  strength  of  Daniel's  fourth  beast 
is  much  insisted  on.  It  is  *  dreadful,  and  terrible, 
and  strong  exceedingly.'  It  '  devours,  and  breaks 
in  pieces,  and  stamps  the  residue  with  its  feet.'  It 
'  shall  devour  the  whole  earth,'  says  the  interpret- 
ing angel,  'and  tread  it  down,  and  break  it  in 
pieces'  (Dan.  vii.  7,  23).  In  a  parallel  passage, 
Daniel  says :  '  The  fourth  kingdom  shall  be  strong 
as  iron :  forasmuch  iron  breaketh  in  pieces  and  sub- 
dueth  all  things '  (Dan.  ii.  40).  Now,  all  this  applies 
exactly  to  the  great  Roman  empire,  but  not  at  all 
to  the  kingdoms  of  Alexander  s  successors,  or  to 
any  of  them. 

3.  Regarding  these  kingdoms  as  organically 
connected  with  the  Grecian  empire,  as  Daniel  cer- 
tainly did,  then  the  Roman  empire  follows  imme- 
diately upon  the  fall  of  the  great  Grecian  empire ; 
as  that  of  Alexander  did  upon  the  fall  of  the  Medo- 
Persian  empire,  and  the  ^ledo-Persian  upon  the  fall 
of  the  Babylonian.  Indeed,  it  was  Rome  which  en- 
gulfed and  swallowed  up  the  poor  remains  of  the 
Grecian  empire.  In  this  view,  the  four  gi-eat  empires 
follow  each  other  consecutively  and  analogically. 

4.  The  Roman  empire  had  much  to  do  with  the 


DANIEL'S  VISION  OF  THE  FOUR  BEASTS.     147 

Church  of  God,  both  before  and  after  the  commg  of 
Christ.  Hence  there  is  the  same  reason  why  Rome 
should  be  noted  in  this  notable  prophecy,  as  why 
Babylon,  or  Persia,  or  Alexander  and  his  successors, 
should  be. 

5.  But  the  grand  reason  why  we  regard  the 
fourth  beast  of  Daniel  as  setting  forth  the  Eoman 
empire  is,  that  its  ultimate  downfall,  in  Papal 
Rome,  is  immediately  followed,  as  I  have  said 
before,  by  the  millennial  kingdom.  No  sooner  is 
'  its  dominion  taken  away,  to  consume  and  destroy 
it  unto  the  end,'  than  '  the  kingdom,  and  dominion, 
and  greatness  of  the  kingdom  under  the  whole 
heaven  is  given  to  the  people  of  the  saints  of  the 
Most  High'  (Dan.  vii.  27).  This,  it  seems  to  me, 
is  decisive  as  to  the  interpretation  of  the  fourth 
beast.  Antiochus  Epiphanes  died  one  hundred  and 
sixty  four  years  before  the  coming  of  Christ.  But 
Daniel's  fourth  beast  is  to  retain  and  exert  his 
terrific  power  long  ages  after  the  Christian  era; 
and,  upon  his  final  destruction,  the  millennial  glory 
of  the  Church  is  to  be  ushered  in. 

It  should  be  kept  in  mind  that  two  little  horns 
are  brought  before  us  in  the  predictions  of  Daniel. 
One  springs  from  the  roots  of  'the  king  of  Grecia,' 
and  denotes,  undoubtedly,  the  cruel  and  blasphemous 
Antiochus  Epiphanes  (see  Dan.  viii.  9-12.)  The 
other  springs  from  the  head  of  Daniel's  fourth  beast. 


148  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

It  comes  up  in  connection  with  Rome,  and  in  the 
doctrine  of  the  vast  Roman  dominion.  It  clearly 
represents  the  Papacy  in  its  temporal  power.  The 
springing  up  of  this  horn,  and  the  rising  of  John's 
first  beast  out  of  the  sea,  in  Rev.  xiii.  1,  refer  to  the 
same  event — the  rise  of  the  Papal  kingdom. 

Daniel  presents  us  with  one  fact  in  regard  to 
this  Papal  kingdom  which  John  does  not  mention, 
viz.,  that  three  of  the  existing  ten  kingdoms  were 
overthrown  in  order  to  make  room  for  it.  Sir 
Isaac  Newton  says,  and  in  his  judgment  we  coincide, 
that  these  three  were  the  government  of  Rome  itself, 
the  kingdom  of  the  Lombards,  and  the  Exarchate 
of  Ravenna.  These  three  governments  were  sub- 
verted by  Pepin  and  Charlemagne,  and  their  tern- 
tory  given  to  the  Pontiff,  to  constitute  his  temporal 
kingdom. 

This  little  horn,  or  Papal  Rome,  is  said  to  have 
'  eyes  like  a  man,  and  a  mouth  speaking  great 
things,'  'He  shall  speak  great  words  against  the 
Most  High,  and  shall  wear  out  the  saints  of  the 
Most  High,'  making  war  with  them,  and  prevailing 
against  them.  '  He  shall  think  to  change  times 
and  laws,'  —  to  abolish  existing  ordinances  and 
establish  new  ones,  according  to  his  pleasure.  He 
is  to  continue  '  a  time,  times,  and  the  dividing  of 
time  ' — three  years  and  a  half  ^ — in  prophetic  lan- 

^  A  time  in  Daniel  signifies  a  year  (Dan.  iv.  16). 


DANIEL'S  VISION  OF  THE  FOUR  BEASTS.     149 

guage,  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  years, — the  same 
period  as  the  beast  of  John.  And  then  the  judg- 
ment shall  sit,  and  '  they  shall  take  away  his 
dominion,  to  consume  and  destroy  it  unto  the  end.' 
Upon  this  follows  immediately,  as  in  the  Revelation, 
the  millennial  kingdom.  '  The  kingdom,  and  domi- 
nion, and  the  greatness  of  the  kingdom  under  the 
whole  heaven,  is  given  to  the  people  of  the  saints 
of  the  Most  High.' 

Such  coincidences  in  the  predictions  of  these 
two  great  prophets, — living  under  different  dispen- 
sations and  so  remote  from  each  other, — are  cer- 
tainly very  remarkable  and  instructive.  They  serve 
to  confirm  our  faith  in  the  inspiration  of  both,  and 
our  confidence  in  the  correctness  of  those  interpre- 
tations which  have  been  put  upon  them. 


150  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

SUNDRY    VISIONS — PREPARATION   FOR    THE   SEVEN 

LAST  PLAGUES. 
REVELATION,  CHAPS.  XIV.,  XV. 

THE  visions  in  this  chapter  are  of  a  miscellaneous 
character,  some  of  which  have  no  prophetical 
significance.  From  the  prolonged  ravages  of  the 
beasts  in  the  preceding  chapter,  the  eye  of  the  seer 
is  now  directed  to  heaven. 

'  I  looked,  and,  lo,  a  Lamb  stood  on  the  mount 
Sion,  and  with  him  a  hundred  and  forty-four 
thousand,' — a  definite  number  for  an  indefinite, 
— '  having  his  Father's  name  written  on  their 
foreheads.  And  I  heard  a  voice  from  heaven, 
as  the  voice  of  many  waters,  and  as  the  voice 
of  a  great  thunder  :  and  I  heard  the  voice  of 
harpers  harping  with  their  harps :  And  they  sung 
as  it  were  a  new  song  before  the  throne,  and  before 
the  four  living  creatures,  and  the  elders,  and  no  man 
could  learn  that  song  but  the  hundred  and  forty 
and  four  thousand,  which  were  redeemed  from  the 
earth.  These  are  they  which  follow  the  Lamb 
whithersoever  he  goeth.     And  in  their  mouth  was 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  XIV.,  XV.  151 

found  no  guile :  for  tliey  are  without  fault  before 
the  throne  of  God '  (Rev.  xiv.  1—5). 

Next,  the  prophet  sees  '  another  angel  fly  in  the 
midst  of  heaven,  having  the  everlasting  gospel  to 
preach  unto  them  that  dwell  on  the  earth,  and  to 
every  nation,  and  kindred,  and  tongue,  and  people, 
saying,  with  a  loud  voice,  Fear  God  and  give  glory 
to  Him ;  for  the  hour  of  His  judgment  is  come  : 
and  worship  Him  that  made  heaven  and  earth  and 
the  sea,  and  the  fountains  of  waters '  (Rev.  xiv. 
6,7). 

Among  the  indispensable  preparations  for  mil- 
lennial glory  is  the  universal  spread  of  the  gospel. 
The  gospel  must  first  be  preached  among  all  na- 
tions. This  great  preparatory  work  is  portended 
in  the  vision  before  us.  This  prediction  began  to 
be  fulfilled  at  the  time  of  the  Reformation,  when 
the  gospel  was  extensively  proclaimed  and  em- 
braced. It  is  in  process  of  fulfilment  at  the  present 
day,  and  will  be  more  illustriously  accomplished  as 
the  millennium  approaches. 

Another  angel  inmiediately  follows,  announcing, 
by  anticipation,  that  the  dread  conflict  is  over. 
'  Babylon  is  fallen,  is  fallen,  that  great  city,  because 
she  made  all  nations  drink  of  the  wine  of  the  wrath 
of  her  fornication '  (Rev.  xiv.  8). 

It  is  no  uncommon  thing  for  the  prophets  to 
speak  of  events  as  passing,  or  already  past,  which 


152  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

are  sure,  in  their  time,  to  be  accomplislied.  Tims, 
in  predicting  the  destruction  of  the  Hteral  Babylon, 
which  in  liis  day  was  far  future,  Isaiah  says :  '  Bel 
boweth  down ;  Nebo  stoopeth ;  their  idols  are  upon 
the  beasts  and  the  cattle .  they  are  gone  into  cap- 
tivity '  (Isa.  xlvi.  1). 

Next  follows  an  angel  with  a  message  of  solemn, 
awful  warning.  *  If  any  man  worship  the  beast  and 
his  image,  and  receive  his  mark  in  his  forehead  and 
in  his  head,  the  same  shall  drink  of  the  wine  of  the 
wrath  of  God,  which  is  poured  out  \\4thout  mixture 
into  the  cup  of  his  indignation ;  and  he  shall  be 
tormented  with  fire  and  brimstone  in  the  presence 
of  the  holy  angels,  and  in  the  presence  of  the  Lamb; 
and  the  smoke  of  their  torment  ascendeth  up  for 
ever  and  ever ;  and  they  have  no  rest  day  nor  night, 
who  worship  the  beast  and  his  image,  and  whoso- 
ever receiveth  the  mark  of  his  name'  (Rev.  xiv. 
9-11). 

This  warning  implies, — what  is  true,  and  what 
we  see  taking  place  in  every  direction  around  us, — 
that,  in  the  great  conflict  preceding  the  millennium, 
the  most  strenuous  efforts  will  be  made  by  the  emis- 
saries of  Rome  to  draw  individuals  and  peoples  into 
its  interest — to  impress  upon  them  the  mark  of  the 
beast,  and  of  his  image,  and  his  name.  The  angel 
sets  before  them  the  dreadful  consequences  of  yield- 
ing to  such  persuasions,  and  urges  them  to  resist 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  XIV.,  XV.  153 

bj  every  motive  of  terror  and  of  fear.-^  At  the 
same  time,  the  warning  angel  proceeds  to  set  forth 
the  safety  of  those  who  put  their  trust  in  Christ, 
and  patiently  wait  for  Him,  '  Here  is  the  patience 
of  the  saints.  Here  are  they  that  keep  the  com- 
mandments of  God  and  the  faith  of  Jesus'  (Rev. 
xiv.  12). 

The  next  vision  in  the  chapter  is  one  of  surpass- 
ing interest.  '  I  looked,  and  behold,  a  white  cloud, 
and  upon  the  cloud  one  sat  like  unto  the  Son  of 
man,' — the  Lord  Jesus  Christ — '  having  on  his  head 
a  golden  crown,  and  in  His  hand  a  sharp  sickle/ 
And  a  message  comes  to  Him  from  the  recesses  of 
the  temple  :  '  Thrust  in  Thy  sickle,  and  reap  :  for  the 
time  is  come  for  Thee  to  reap ;  for  the  harvest  of 
the  earth  is  ripe.  And  He  that  sat  on  the  cloud 
thrust  in  his  sickle  on  the  earth,  and  the  earth  was 
reaped'  (Rev.  xiv.  14—16). 

Here  we  behold  the  Son  of  man  reaping  and 
garnering  His  own  chosen  people,  and  thus  secur- 
ing them  from  the  destruction  which  is  speedily  to 
be  poured  upon  the  wicked  of  the  earth.  And  in 
this  view,  these  verses  seem  to  connect  with  that 
which  precedes  them :  '  Blessed  are  the  dead  which 
die  in  the  Lord  from  henceforth.'  Those  who  die 
in  the  Lord  in  those  troublous  times  are  peculiarly 
blessed ;  for,  being  gathered  and  garnered  by  the 

^  The  angels  of  heaven  are  not  afraid  of  preaching  terror. 

U 


154  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

Lord  himself,  no  evil  can  overtake  them.  *  They 
shall  rest  from  their  labours  (xottojv,  griefs,  sorrows) 
and  their  works  do  follow  them.' 

And  now  follows  the  closing  vision  of  the  chap- 
ter— one  of  tenible  import  to  the  wicked  of  the 
earth.  It  runs  down  obviously  to  the  closing  con- 
flict before  the  millennium,  and  corresponds  to  the 
five  last  verses  of  the  nineteenth  chapter  of  the 
Revelation.  *  And  another  angel  came  out  of  the 
temple  which  is  in  heaven,  he  also  having  a  sharp 
sickle.  And  another  angel  came  out  from  the  altar, 
which  had  power  over  fire ;  and  cried  with  a  loud 
cry  to  him  that  had  the  sharp  sickle,  saying,  Thrust 
in  thy  sharp  sickle,  and  gather  the  clusters  of  the 
vine  of  the  earth;  for  her  grapes  are  fully  ripe. 
And  the  angel  thrust  in  his  sickle  into  the  earth, 
and  gathered  the  vine  of  the  earth,  and  cast  it  into 
the  gi'eat  winepress  of  the  wrath  of  God.  And  the 
winepress  was  trodden  without  the  city,  and  blood 
came  out  of  the  winepress,  even  unto  the  horse 
bridles,  by  the  space  of  a  thousand  and  six  hun- 
dred furlongs'  (or  two  hundred  miles)  (Rev.  xiv. 
17-20). 

Here  is  presented  a  lake  of  blood,  up  to  the 
horses'  bridles,  and  two  hundred  miles  square. 
Without  supposing  anything  like  a  literal  fulfil- 
ment, the  symbols  unmistakably  indicate  a  terrible 
destruction  of  the  enemies  of  God,  to  be  accora- 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  XIV.,  XV.  155 

plished  when  the  harvest  of  the  world  is  ripe,  im- 
mediately preceding  Christ's  millennial  kingdom. 
The  Seven  Last  Plagues. 

'  And  I  saw  another  sign,'  or  symbol,  '  in  heaven, 
great  and  marvellous,  seven  angels  having  the 
seven  last  plagues ;  for  in  them  is  filled  up  the 
wrath  of  God'  (Rev.  xv.  1). 

Every  reader  of  the  Revelation  must  have  noticed 
that  the  number  seven  here  is  of  frequent  occur- 
rence. It  was  regarded  by  the  Hebrews  as  symbo- 
lic, denoting  completeness  or  perfection.  Thus,  '  the 
seven  Spirits  of  God  before  the  throne '  (chap.  iv.  5), 
denote  God's  perfect  Holy  Spirit.  The  seven  seals 
include  a  complete  system  of  prophecy,  extending 
from  the  time  of  the  writer  to  the  millennium.  The 
seven  trumpets  set  forth  a  perfect  series  of  judg- 
ments, by  which  the  entire  Roman  empire.  Western 
and  Eastern,  was  overthrown.  And  the  seven  last 
plagues,  in  the  verse  before  us,  signify  another  series 
of  judgments,  by  which  Papal  Rome  will  be  utterly 
crushed,  and  the  kingdom  of  Christ  will  be  esta- 
blished, and  become  universal.  They  are  spoken  of 
as  '  the  seven  last  plagues  ; '  for  in  them  is  filled  up 
the  wrath  of  God,  This  indicates  that  they  reach 
down  to  the  close  of  the  final  conflict,  and  that  there 
is  nought,  in  the  way  of  judgment,  to  come  after 
them. 

*  And  I  saw  as  it  were  a  sea  of  glass  mingled 


156  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

with  fire ;  and  them  that  had  gotten  the  victory 
over  the  beast,  and  over  his  image,  and  over  his 
mark,  and  over  the  number  of  his  name,  stand  on 
the  sea  of  glass,  having  the  harps  of  God.  And  they 
sing  the  song  of  Moses,  the  servant  of  God,  and  the 
song  of  the  Lamb,  saying.  Great  and  marvellous  are 
Thy  works.  Lord  God  Almighty ;  just  and  true  are 
Thy  ways.  Thou  King  of  saints.  Who  shall  not  fear 
Thee,  0  Lord,  and  glorify  Thy  name  ?  for  Thou  only 
art  holy:  for  all  nations  shall  come  and  worship 
before  Thee ;  for  Thy  judgments  are  made  mani- 
fest '  (Rev.  XV.  2-4). 

This  sea  of  glass,  as  I  have  before  said  (chap, 
iv.  6),  does  not  indicate  a  collection  of  water,  but 
rather  a  glossy,  glittering  pavement,  smooth  as  the 
surface  of  a  lake,  extended  round  about  the  throne, 
on  which  those  stood,  with  their  harps,  who  had 
gotten  the  victory  over  the  beast.  And  here  they 
unite,  as  above,  in  singing  the  song  of  Moses  and 
the  Lamb. 

*  And  after  that  I  looked,  and,  behold,  the  temple 
of  the  tabernacle  of  the  testimony  in  heaven  was 
opened.'  The  heavenly  temple  was  opened  even 
to  the  holy  of  holies,  where  was  the  ark  of  the 
testimony  and  the  mercy  seat.  'And  the  seven 
angels  came  out  of  the  temple,' — the  inmost  recesses 
of  the  temple,  from  the  immediate  presence  of  God, 
— 'having  the  seven  plagues,  clothed  in  pure  and 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XIV,,  XV.  157 

white  linen,  and  having  their  breasts  girded  with 
golden  girdles.  And  one  of  the  four  living  creatures 
gave  unto  the  seven  angels  seven  golden  vials,  full 
of  the  wrath  of  God,  who  liveth  for  ever  and  ever.' 
The  word  here  rendered  vials  signifies  howls  or 
goblets.  They  were  filled  with  the  implements  or 
instruments  of  divine  wrath.  '  And  the  temple  was 
filled  with  smoke  from  the  glory  of  God ;  and  no 
man  was  able  to  enter  into  the  temple,' — to  make 
intercession  for  the  guilty, — '  till  the  seven  plagues 
of  the  seven  angels  were  fulfilled'  (Rev.  xv.  5—8). 


158  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

THE  POURING  OUT  OF   THE  SEYEX  YIALS. 

REVELATION,  CHAP.   XVI. 

*    A  ^D  I  heard  a  great  voice  out  of  the  temple, 
jlJL     saying  to  the  seven  angels,  Go  your  ways 
and  pour  out  the  vials  of  the  wrath  of  God  upon 
the  earth '  (Rev.  xvi.  1). 

It  has  been  often  remarked  that  there  is  a  strik- 
ing correspondence  between  the  phraseology  used 
in  reference  to  the  pouring  out  of  these  vials,  and 
that  connected  with  the  sounding  of  the  trumpets 
in  the  eighth  and  ninth  chapters.  Thus,  upon  the 
sounding  of  the  first  trumpet,  the  infliction  falls  upon 
the  eai'th ;  and  so  it  does  upon  the  pouring  out  of  the 
first  vial.  Upon  the  blast  of  the  second  trumpet,  the 
sea  is  afiected ;  and  so  it  is  upon  the  emptying  of  the 
second  vial.  When  the  third  angel  sounded,  there 
fell  a  great  star  upon  the  rivers  and  fountams  of 
water.  So  the  third  vial  was  poured  out  upon  the 
rivers  and  fountains  of  water.  When  the  fourth 
angel  sounded,  the  sun  was  smitten  ;  and  the  fourth 
angel  poured  out  his  vial  upon  the  sun.  The 
sounding  of  the  sixth  trumpet  fell  upon  the  great 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XVI.  159 

river  Euphrates ;  and  the  sixth  angel  poured  out 
his  vial  upon  the  same  river. 

These  successive  correspondences  are  certainly 
remarkable,  and  would  seem  to  be  designed.  The 
reason  of  them  may  be  this :  The  blasts  of  the 
several  trumpets  looked,  as  we  have  shown,  to  the 
overthrow  of  the  vast  Roman  empire,  whereas  the 
plagues  of  the  vials  are  designed  for  the  destruc- 
tion of  Papal  Rome — the  beast,  the  Babylon,  the 
antichrist  of  the  New  Testament.  They  are  the 
successive  blows  under  which  the  Papacy,  in  both 
its  secular  and  spiritual  dominion,  is  to  come  to  an 
end.  A  part  of  these  inflictions  is  still  future,  while 
some  of  them  are  passing,  or  past,  and  the  applica- 
tion of  them  may  perhaps  be  ascertained. 

I  agree  with  many  distinguished  commentators 
in  referring  several  of  the  vials  to  events  connected 
with  the  first  French  revolution.  Nor  is  this  to  be 
wondered  at,  when  we  consider  the  intimate  vital 
connection  which  has  subsisted  between  France  and 
the  Papacy  for  the  last  thousand  years.  It  was  a 
king  of  France  who  first  gave  to  the  Pope  his 
temporal  dominions,  and  constituted  him  a  king. 
And  the  French  kings  have  ever  held  a  peculiar 
connection  with  the  Popes,  sometimes  coercing,  and 
sometimes  protecting,  as  the  case  might  be.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  monarch  of  France  has  long 
been    styled   by    the   Pope,    '  His   Most  Christian 


160  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED:      . 

Majesty,'  and  *  the  eldest  son  of  the  Church.'  Let 
us  then  look  to  events  preceding  and  following  the 
revolution  in  France,  as  fulfilling  the  portents  of 
some  of  these  vials. 

The  First  Vial. 

*And  the  fii'st  angel  went  and  poured  out  his 
vial  upon  the  earth ;  and  there  fell  a  noisome  and 
grievous  sore  upon  the  men  which  had  the  mark 
of  the  beast,  and  upon  them  that  worshipped  his 
image'  (Rev.  xvi.  2). 

As  noisome  and  grievous  sores  on  the  bodies  of 
men  indicate  internal  corruption — inflammation, 
tumours,  and  impurities  of  blood;  so  moral,  poli- 
tical sores,  and  ulcers,  prove  the  same  in  regard  to 
a  people.  There  must  have  been  a  preparation 
for  such  calamities  in  the  minds  and  hearts  of  the 
people — in  the  inculcation  of  false  pnnciples,  per- 
nicious errors,  and  in  the  awakening  by  these 
means,  of  ruinous  prejudices  and  passions.  And 
this  is  precisely  what  had  been  going  on  in  France 
for  many  years  previous  to  the  revolution.  In- 
fidelity and  Atheism  had  been  openly  inculcated, 
until  men  had  learned  to  scoff  at  everything  re- 
spectable in  morals  and  religion.  The  Bible  had 
been  thrown  aside  as  a  ruinous  imposition,  the  God 
of  the  Bible  had  been  rejected,  and  death  was 
declared  an  eternal  sleep.  At  the  same  time,  there 
had  been  inculcated,  under  the  specious  names  of 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XVL  161 

liberty  and  equality,  the  most  radical  and  out- 
rageous principles  of  social  and  political  life.  'Away 
with  all  distinctions  between  the  high  and  the  low, 
the  rich  and  the  poor,  the  virtuous  and  the  de- 
graded, the  honourable  and  the  despised.  All  pre- 
tensions of  this  sort  must  yield  before  the  claims  of 
reason,  and  the  rising  light  of  the  new  philosophy.' 

That  such  was  the  state  of  opinion  and  feeling 
in  France  in  the  latter  part  of  the  last  century,  no 
one  acquainted  with  the  history  of  the  times  can 
doubt.  The  currents  of  social  and  political  life  had 
all  been  corrupted,  moral  impurity  throbbed  through 
the  entire  system,  and  no  wonder  the  infection  soon 
made  its  appearance  in  noisome  and  grievous  sores 
and  ulcers.  What  else  was  to  be  expected  from  such 
a  preparation  ?  The  odious  and  painful  symbols  of 
the  first  vial  here  met  a  full  significance. 

The  Second  Vial. 

'  And  the  second  angel  poured  out  his  vial  upon 
the  sea ;  and  it  became  as  the  blood  of  a  dead  man: 
and  every  living  soul  died  in  the  sea.' 

As  this  vial  was  poured  upon  the  sea,  some  in- 
terpreters are  inclined  to  look  for  its  fulfilment  in 
the  naval  defeats  and  losses  of  the  French  during 
their  revolutionary  struggle.  And  these,  certainly, 
were  numerous  and  crushing.  It  has  been  com- 
puted that,  during  this  bloody  period,  the  French 
lost  two  hundred  ships  of  the  line,  between  three 

X 


162  TUE  ALOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

and  four  hundred  frigates,  and  an  incalculable  num- 
ber of  smaller  vessels. 

But  I  am  inclined  to  look  for  tlie  significance  of 
the  second  vial  in  the  revolution  itself.  We  have 
seen  -what  preparation  had  long  been  making  for  it; 
and  in  due  time  the  vial  of  wrath  came.  At  first, 
under  the  National  Assembly,  the  assault  was  chiefly 
on  the  property  of  the  citizens ;  but  after  the 
establishment  of  the  Convention, — when  the  nation 
had  become  frantic  at  the  alarm  of  foreign  invasion, 
which  the  king  and  the  clergy  were  supposed  to 
favour, — the  storm  arose  and  prostrated  every 
thing.  The  Church  and  the  throne  went  down  to- 
gether. From  this  time,  the  blasphemies,  the  blood, 
and  carnage  of  the  revolution  were  quickly  in- 
augurated; and  the  miseries  which  were  endured 
by  that  single  nation,  in  the  course  of  a  few  years, 
transcend  all  description.  The  whole  country 
seemed  to  be  turned  into  one  great  prison  house, 
the  inhabitants  to  be  converted  into  felons,  and  the 
ordinary  doom  of  man  to  be  commuted  for  the 
butchery  of  the  sword  and  the  guillotine.  It 
seemed  for  a  time  as  if  the  knell  of  the  whole 
nation  was  tolled,  and  the  world  summoned  to  its 
execution  and  funeral.  Within  the  space  of  ten 
years,  not  less  than  three  million  of  human  beings 
are  supposed  to  have  perished  in  that  one  country. 
Well  may  such  an  immolation  be   portended  by 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XVL  163 

a  sea  of  blood,  in  whicli  every  living  creature 
dies. 

The  Third  Vial. 

*  And  the  third  angel  poured  out  his  vial  upon 
the  rivers  and  fountains  of  waters ;  and  they  became 
blood.  And  I  heard  the  angel  of  the  waters  say, 
Thou  art  righteous,  0  Lord,  which  art,  and  wast, 
and  shalt  be,  because  Thou  hast  judged  thus :  for 
they  have  shed  the  blood  of  saints  and  prophets, 
and  Thou  hast  given  them  blood  to  drink ;  for  they 
are  worthy.  And  I  heard  another  out  of  the  altar 
say.  Even  so.  Lord  God  Almighty,  true  and  right- 
eous are  Thy  judgments '  (Rev.  xvi.  3-7). 

We  cannot  mistake  in  applying  this  prediction 
to  some  Papal  country  abounding  with  streams  and 
fountains,  and  where  there  had  been  much  persecu- 
tion. *They  have  shed  the  blood  of  saints  and 
prophets,  and  Thou  hast  given  them  blood  to 
drink;  for  they  are  w^orthy.'  The  next  material 
event,  after  the  revolution  in  France,  was  the 
invasion  of  Italy,  where  Napoleon  gained  his  first 
victories,  and  acquired  his  earliest  fame.  Here 
occurred  the  battles  of  Montenotte,  Millesimo,  and 
Dego ;  the  passage  of  the  bridge  of  Lodi,  and  the 
fall  of  Milan ;  the  siege  of  Mantua,  and  the  battle 
of  Castiglione ;  the  battles  of  Caldero,  Areola,  and 
Eivola,  and  the  fall  of  Venice.  Most  of  these  battles 
were  on  the  branches  of  the  Po — a  countrv  abound- 


lei  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

ing  with  rivers  and  streams,  also  a  country  long 
reddened  with  the  blood  of  martyrs.  Here  the 
persecutions  of  the  Albigenses  and  Waldenses  had 
been  perpretated,  until  the  Alpine  valleys  literally 
ran  with  blood.  The  blood  which  was  now  given 
them  to  drink  was  no  more  than  a  righteous  retri- 
bution ;  and,  from  the  blow  w^hicli  here  fell  upon 
the  Papal  power,  persecuting  Rome  has  never 
recovered. 

The  Fourth  Vial. 

'And  the  fourth  angel  poured  out  liis  vial  upon 
the  sun ;  and  power  was  given  unto  him  to  scorch 
men  with  fire.  And  men  were  scorched  with  great 
heat,  and  blasphemed  the  name  of  God,  which  hath 
power  over  these  plagues :  and  they  repented  not 
to  give  Him  glory '  (Rev.  xvi.  8,  9). 

Following  out  the  train  of  remark  already  pur- 
sued, I  cannot  resist  the  conclusion,  that  the  fourth 
vial  portended  the  wars  of  Napoleon  in  Germany 
and  Austria.  These  followed  immediately  upon  his 
wars  in  Italy.  Indeed,  one  of  the  purposes  for  which 
he  invaded  Italy  was,  to  secure  the  Austrian  posses- 
sions there,  and  through  them  to  reach  Austria 
itself.  These  wars  were  crushing,  and  exceedingly 
bloody.  They  all  tended  to  weaken  the  Papal 
power,  and  ultimately  to  destroy  it.  In  their  pro- 
gress, as  one  well  expresses  it,  '  Europe  seemed  to 
be  all  on  fire  with  musketry  and  artillery,  present- 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XVI,  1G5 

ing  the  blaze  of  a  vast  battle-field.'  To  tlie  miser- 
able inhabitants,  it  was  as  though  the  very  sun  in 
the  heavens  had  been  commissioned  to  consume 
and  destroy  them.  Still  they  blasphemed  the 
name  of  God,  and  repented  not  to  give  Him  the 
glory. 

The  Fifth  Vial. 

'  And  the  fifth  angel  poured  out  his  vial  upon  the 
seat  of  the  beast ;  and  his  kingdom  was  full  of  dark- 
ness ;  and  they  gnawed  their  tongues  for  pain,  and 
blasphemed  the  God  of  heaven  because  of  their 
pains  and  their  sores,  and  repented  not  of  their 
deeds'  (Rev.  xvi.  10,  11). 

Though  all  the  previous  judgments  had  been 
preparatory  to  the  one  here  presented,  the  grand 
object  of  the  revolutionists  had  not  as  yet  been 
accomplished.  The  seat,  the  throne  of  the  beast, 
had  not  been  reached.  But  now  a  vial  of  wrath  is 
poured  directly  upon  it.  The  ecclesiastical  states 
of  Italy,  and  the  capital,  were  to  be  attacked.  In 
this  delicate  and  responsible  undertaking  the  French 
Directory  proceeded  with  more  caution,  and  with  a 
greater  show  of  moderation,  than  they  were  wont 
to  assume  ;  still,  their  purpose  was  fixed,  and  they 
firmly  adhered  to  it.  Early  in  the  year  1799  Rome 
was  taken,  and  the  tricolor  flag  floated  on  the  summit 
of  the  Capitol.  The  Pope  was  dragged  from  his 
palace,  his  repositories  were  all  ransacked  and  plmi' 


166  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

dered;  even  the  rings  were  torn  from  Lis  aged 
fingers.  He  begged  to  be  permitted  to  die  where  he 
was ;  but  he  was  told  that  he  could  die  anywhere 
else  as  well.  He  was  first  sent  into  Tuscany,  then 
to  Leghorn,  and  thence  was  compelled  to  traverse 
the  Alps  and  Apennines  on  his  way  to  France.  But 
he  did  not  live  to  complete  the  journey.  At  Valence, 
after  an  illness  of  ten  days,  Gregory  xvi.  expired,  in 
the  82d  year  of  his  age,  and  the  24th  of  his  pontificate. 

Meanwhile  the  French  troops  had  commenced  a 
regular  and  systematic  pillage  of  Rome.  Not  only 
the  churches  and  convents,  but  the  palaces  of  the 
nobility  and  the  cardinals  were  laid  waste.  The 
soldiers  ransacked  every  quarter  of  the  city,  seized 
the  most  valuable  works  of  art,  and  carried  away  a 
vast  amount  of  treasure,  which  former  conquerors 
had  spared. 

It  might  seem  that  the  Papal  power  was  now 
forever  crushed.  The  deep  hostility  of  the  revolu- 
tionists, and  their  constant  successes,  apparently 
looked  to  no  other  result.  Events,  however,  soon 
occurred  to  defeat  such  expectations ;  and  as  much 
as  this  is  indicated  in  the  prediction  before  us.  The 
worshippers  of  the  beast  were  not  to  be  immediately 
destroyed,  but  spared  to  renew  their  abominations. 
'  They  gnawed  their  tongues  for  pain,  and  blas- 
phemed the  God  of  heaven,  and  repented  not  of 
their  deeds.' 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XVL  167 

Not  long  after  tlie  death  of  Gregory,  and  the 
sacking  of  Rome,  some  advantages  were  gained 
over  the  revolutionists,  and  the  cardinals  were  em- 
boldened to  get  together  and  elect  a  new  Pontiff. 
Pius  Yll.  was  chosen  on  the  13th  of  March  1800. 
Napoleon  made  use  of  him  for  a  time  to  further  his 
ambitious  designs,  and  Popery  secured  another 
respite. 

The  Sixth  Vial. 

*  And  the  sixth  angel  poured  out  his  vial  upon 
the  great  river  Euphrates ;  and  the  water  thereof 
was  dried  up,  that  the  way  of  the  kings  of  the  East 
might  be  prepared.'  'And  I  saw  three  unclean  spirits 
like  frogs  come  out  of  the  mouth  of  the  dragon,  and 
out  of  the  mouth  of  the  beast^  and  out  of  the  mouth 
of  the  false  prophet.  For  they  are  the  spirits  of  devils, 
working  miracles,  which  go  forth  unto  the  kings  of 
the  earth,  and  of  the  whole  world,  to  gather  them  to 
the  battle  of  that  great  day  of  God  Almighty.  Be- 
hold, I  come  as  a  thief.  Blessed  is  he  that  watcheth, 
and  keepeth  his  garments,  lest  he  walk  naked,  and 
they  see  his  shame.  And  He  gathered  them  to- 
gether into  a  place  called  in  the  Hebrew  tongue 
Armageddon '  (Rev.  xvi.  12—16). 

The  sixth  trumpet  we  have  before  interpreted  as 
opening  the  way  for  the  Turks,  to  invade  the  Eastern. 
Roman  empire,  and  effect  its  overthrow.  The  sixth 
vial  has  reference,  undoubtedly,  to  the  same  people ; 


1G8  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

but  it  seems  to  indicate,  not  their  prevalence,  but 
their  removal,  '  that  the  way  of  the  kings  of  the 
East  may  be  prepared.'  Who  these  '  kings  of  the 
East '  are,  we  do  not  know.  Our  hope  is,  that  the 
work  of  evangelization  will  go  on  in  the  East — in 
Persia,  China,  India,  Burmah — so  that  when  the 
Turkish  obstacle  shall  be  removed,  a  Christian 
people  may  be  prepared  to  come  forward,  and  affi- 
liate with  their  brethren  of  the  West.  Such  an 
event  would  fulfil  the  portents  of  this  vial,  and  we 
trust  it  may,  ere  long,  be  realized. 

The  Turkish  empire,  once  so  formidable  to  Chris- 
tians, has  long  since  passed  its  zenith,  and  is  appa- 
rently verging  to  its  end.  Instead  of  being  the 
teiTor  of  Christian  Europe,  it  is  now  held  up  by  the 
powers  of  Europe,  in  their  jealousy  one  of  another. 
For  centuries  there  has  been  a  gradual  weakening 
of  the  Turkish  power.  Province  after  province  has 
been  dropping  away,  leaving  it  curtailed  and  feeble. 
Moldavia,  Wallachia,  Greece,  Algiers,  Morocco,  and 
the  other  northern  states  of  Africa,  have  revolted ; 
and  it  holds  but  a  nominal  sway  over  Egypt;  while 
Eussia  only  waits  its  opportunity  to  strike  a  deci- 
sive blow,  and  put  an  end  to  the  Turkish  dominion 
for  ever.  And  when  this  shall  take  place,  a  Chris- 
tian East  may  be  expected  to  come  forward,  as 
above  hinted,  and  join  hands  and  hearts  with  their 
brethren  of  the  West. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XVl.  169 

And  "wlien  the  servants  of  Christ,  in  different 
parts  of  the  world,  become  affiliated,  and  prepared 
to  stand  together,  we  may  expect  a  mighty  in- 
fluence to  be  exerted  against  them.  Who  these 
unclean  spirits  are,  in  the  shape  of  frogs,  which  are 
to  come  forth  from  the  month  of  the  dragon,  the 
beast,  and  the  false  prophet,  I  pretend  not  to  say. 
They  may  be  the  expiring  genii  of  Paganism,  Ma- 
hometanism,  and  of  Popery,  working  together,  as 
they  have  ever  done,  in  opposition  to  the  cause  and 
kingdom  of  Christ.  Or,  they  may  be  the  hordes  of 
Jesuit  emissaries,  who  are  now  training  for  this 
very  purpose,  going  forth  to  muster  their  armies  for 
the  final  conflict.  At  any  rate,  there  is  to  be  such  a 
conflict ;  and  when  the  way  is  fully  prepared  for  it, 
the  seventh  vial  will  be  poured  out. 

The  Seventh  Vial. 

'  And  the  seventh  angel  poured  out  his  vial  uito 
the  air ;  and  there  came  a  great  voice  out  of  the 
temple  of  heaven,  from  the  throne,  saying.  It  is  done. 
And  there  were  voices,  and  thunders,  and  lightnings ; 
and  there  was  a  great  earthquake,  such  as  was  not 
since  men  were  upon  the  earth,  so  mighty  an  earth- 
quake, and  so  great.  And  the  great  city  was  divided 
into  three  parts,  and  the  cities  of  the  nations  fell : 
and  great  Babylon  came  in  remembrance  before 
God,  to  give  unto  her  the  cup  of  the  wine  of  the 
fierceness  of  his  wrath.    And  every  island  fled  away, 


170  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

and  the  mountains  were  not  found.  And  there  fell 
upon  men  a  great  hail  out  of  heaven,  every  stone 
about  the  weight  of  a  talent :  and  men  blasphemed 
God  because  of  the  plague  of  the  hail;  for  the 
plague  thereof  was  exceeding  great '  (Rev.  xvi. 
17-21). 

At  the  close  of  the  sixth  vial,  the  great  conflict 
was  fully  inaugurated,  and  everything  was  in  readi- 
ness for  the  final  stroke.  And  now  it  falls.  *  The 
seventh  angel  poured  out  his  vial  into  the  air ;  and 
there  came  a  great  voice  out  of  the  temple  of 
heaven — from  the  very  throne  of  God — saying.  It 
is  done'  The  long  agony  is  over.  The  dragon, 
the  beast,  the  false  prophet,  and  all  those  who  bear 
their  mark,  or  worship  their  image,  are  subdued, 
and  the  way  is  opened  for  the  universal  prevalence 
and  triumph  of  the  kingdom  of  Christ. 

The  voices,  the  thunders,  the  lightnings,  and 
the  earthquake  denote  the  changes  and  revolutions 
connected  with,  and  consequent  upon,  this  glorious 
event.  We  can  readily  conceive  that  they  must  be 
very  great, — such  as  the  terrific  symbols  here  em- 
ployed do  but  feebly  represent. 

The  great  city  here  spoken  of  is,  without  doubt, 
the  mystic  Babylon, — the  Papacy  with  all  its  ad- 
herents and  dependents.  The  division  of  the  city 
into  three  parts  is  probably  spoken  of  as  one  of  the 
means  of  its  destruction ;  for  we  are  immediately 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XVL  171 

told,  that  *  great  Babylon  came  in  remembrance 
before  God,  to  give  unto  her  the  cup  of  the  wine 
of  the  fierceness  of  his  wrath.' 

Some  of  the  symbols  here  employed,  particularly 
the  hail-stones,  denote,  not  revolution,  but  destruc- 
tion. There  will  be,  there  must  be,  in  the  crisis 
here  spoken  of,  a  terrible  destruction  of  human  life. 
Still,  we  perceive  in  this  instance,  as  in  several 
before  introduced,  that  divine  judgments,  unless 
accompanied  by  the  sanctifying  Spirit,  produce  no 
good  effect.  They  serve  only  to  harden.  *Men 
blasphemed  the  name  of  God  because  of  the  plague 
of  the  hail ;  for  the  plague  thereof  was  exceeding 
great.' 


172  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAIJSED: 


CHAPTER    XV. 

god's  judgment  upon  the  great  whore. 

re\t:lation,  chap.  xvii. 

ALTHOUGH  the  writer  of  the  Revelation,  or 
rather  the  Spirit  which  inspired  him,  had  led 
lis  along  at  the  end  of  the  last  chapter, — as  he  had 
before  done  in  several  instances, — to  the  close  of 
the  great  conflict  immediately  preceding  the  mil- 
lennium, he  seems  not  to  have  been  satisfied  to 
leave  the  matter  thus,  but  must  give  a  new  illustra- 
tion of  the  grand  enemy  with  which  the  Church  had 
been  called  so  long  to  contend,  and  of  his  final 
defeat  and  overthrow.  *And  so,'  says  the  writer, 
*  there  came  to  me  one  of  the  seven  angels  which 
had  the  seven  vials,  and  talked  with  me,  saying, 
Come  hither ;  I  will  show  thee  the  judgment  of  the 
great  whore  that  sitteth  upon  many  waters,  with 
whom  the  kings  of  the  earth  have  committed  forni- 
cation, and  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth  have  been 
made  drunk  w^ith  the  wine  of  her  fornication '  (Rev. 
xvii.  1-2). 

This  is  a  description  of  the  whore  by  the  angel ; 
for  John   had  not  yet   seen  her.       She  is   repre- 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XVIL  173 

sented  by  the  angel  as  having  her  seat  upon  many 
waters,  as  the  literal  Babylon  was  seated  upon  the 
Euphrates,  and  the  literal  Rome  on  the  Tiber. 
These  waters  are  subsequently  interpreted  as  sym- 
bolizing the  peoples,  and  multitudes,  and  nations, 
and  tongues,  over  which  the  woman  exerted  her 
bewitching,  intoxicating  influence. 

*  So  the  angel  carried  me  away  in  the  spirit  into 
the  wilderness :  and  I  saw  a  woman  sit  upon  a 
scarlet-coloured  beast,  full  of  names  of  blasphemy, 
having  seven  heads  and  ten  horns.  And  the  woman 
was  arrayed  in  purple  and  scarlet  colour,  and  decked 
with  gold,  and  precious  stones,  and  pearls,  having  a 
golden  cup  in  her  hand  full  of  abominations  and 
filthiness  of  her  fornication:  and  upon  her  forehead 
was  a  name  written.  Mystery,  Babylon  the  great, 

THE  MOTHER  OP  HARLOTS  AND  ABOMINATIONS  OP 
THE  EARTH.  And  I  saw  the  woman  drunken  with 
the  blood  of  the  saints,  and  with  the  blood  of  the 
martyrs  of  Jesus :  and  when  I  saw  her,  I  wondered 
with  great  admiration.  And  the  angel  said  unto 
me.  Wherefore  didst  thou  marvel?  I  will  tell  thee 
the  mystery  of  the  woman,  and  of  the  beast  that 
carrieth  her,  which  hath  the  seven  heads  and  ten 
horns'  (Rev.  xvii.  3—7).. 

And  so  the  angel  proceeds  to  interpret  the  vision 
to  the  prophet,  and  to  explain  its  significance. 
*  The  beast  that  thou  sawest  was,  and  is  not ;  and 


174  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

shall  ascend  out  of  the  bottomless  pit,  and  go  into 
perdition :  and  they  that  dwell  on  the  earth  shall 
•wonder,  (whose  names  were  not  written  in  the  book 
of  life  from  the  foundation  of  the  world,)  when 
they  behold  the  beast  that  was,  and  is  not,  and 
yet  is '  (Rev.  xvii.  8). 

This  is  the  same  beast  which  John  saw  rise  out 
of  the  sea  in  the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  chapter, 
and  which  wo  interpreted  to  signify  Papal  Rome, 
in  its  civil,  secular,  kingly  authority.  And  if  there 
could  be  any  doubt  as  to  the  correctness  of  this 
interpretation  before,  we  are  confirmed  in  it  by  the 
interpretation  of  the  angel  here.  '  Here  is  the  mind 
that  hath  wisdom.  The  seven  heads  are  seven 
mountains,  on  which  the  woman  sitteth,' — referring 
"to  the  seven  hills  on  which  Rome  was  built.  *  And 
there  are  seven  kings :  five  are  fallen,  and  one  is, 
and  the  other  is  not  yet  come ;  and  when  he  cometh, 
he  must  continue  a  short  space.  And  the  beast 
that  was,  and  is  not,  even  he  is  the  eighth,  and  is 
of  the  seven,  and  goeth  into  perdition.  And  the 
ten  horns  which  thou  sawest,  are  ten  kings,  w^hich 
have  received  no  kingdom  as  yet ;  but  receive  power 
as  kings  one  hour  with  the  beast.  These  have  one 
mind,  and  shall  give  their  power  and  strength  unto 
the  beast.  These  shall  make  w^ar  with  the  Lamb, 
and  the  Lamb  shall  overcome  them ;  for  he  is  Lord 
of  lords  and  King  of  kings :  and  they  that  are  with 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XVIL  175 

him,  are  called,   and  cliosen,   and  faithful'    (Key. 
xvii.  9—14). 

The  seven  kings  here  spoken  of,  as  explained  in 
a  previous  chapter,  are  the  seven  forms  of  govern- 
ment which  had  prevailed  at  Rome,  viz.,  kings, 
consuls,  dictators,  decemvirs,  military  tribunes,  and 
emperors, — the  last  of  which  governed  Rome  when 
the  Apocalypse  was  written.  Succeeding  the  fall 
of  the  emperors  and  the  Gothic  kings,  Rome,  with 
its  environs,  was  reduced  to  a  dukedom,  subject  to 
the  exarch  of  Ravenna.  This  was  the  seventh  form 
of  government  which,  compared  with  what  preceded 
and  followed  it,  continued  but  '  a  short  space.'  As 
to  'the  beast  that  was  and  is  not,  which  is  the 
eighth  and  is  of  the  seven,'  there  can  be  no  difficulty 
in  applying  this  to  the  Papacy,  in  its  kingly  autho- 
rity. This  was,  in  some  sense,  a  new  form  of 
government,  the  eighth  ;  and  yet  it  is  of  the  seven, 
— almost  identical  with  two  of  them,  viz.,  kings 
and  emperors.  It  had  the  same  central  seat  with 
the  governments  which  preceded  it, — that  is,  Rome ; 
it  extended  over  the  same  territory,  and  embraced, 
in  its  progress,  the  same  nations.  The  ten  horns  of 
the  beast  are  ten  kingdoms,  which  had  no  existence 
at  the  time  when  this  prophecy  was  written,  but 
came  up  upon  the  overthrow  and  division  of  the 
Western  Empire.  They  came  into  power,  not  one 
hour  with  the  beast,  but  the  same  hour  with  him, — 


176  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

which  is  a  better  rendering  than  that  in  our  trans- 
lation. These  kingdoms  existed  at  the  same  time 
with  the  beast,  had  the  same  mind  with  him,  and 
gave  then-  power  and  strength  unto  him.  Under 
his  influence  '  they  shall  make  war  with  the  Lamb; 
but  the  Lamb  shall  overcome  them ;  for  He  is  Lord 
of  lords,  and  King  of  kings.' 

Such  was  the  beast  on  which  the  whore  was 
sitting, — Papal  Rome,  in  its  royal  kingly  authority. 
But  what  does  the  whore  stand  for  ?  Whom  does 
she  represent  ?  There  can  be  as  little  doubt  in  this 
case  as  in  the  other.  She  represents  the  Papacy  in 
its  spiritual  authority.  She  is  identical  with  the 
second  beast  in  the  thirteenth  chapter;  and  also 
with  '  the  false  prophet,'  who  is  so  frequently  asso- 
ciated T\dth  the  beast,  and  is  said  to  have  *  wrought 
miracles  before  him,  with  which  to  deceive  them 
which  had  the  mark  of  the  beast,  and  that  wor- 
shipped his  image '  (chap.  xix.  20).  The  design  of 
this  hideous  and  odious  symbol — the  woman — is 
to  exhibit  more  fully  than  had  yet  been  done,  Papal 
Rome,  in  two  aspects,  viz.,  its  idolatries  and  its 
cruelties.  Idolatry  is  commonly  spoken  of  in  the 
Old  Testament  under  the  similitude  of  whoredom, 
adultery.^  The  idolatiies  of  the  Church  of  Rome 
are  numberless.  They  are  shamelessly  open,  and 
of  long  continuance.     In  the  Iconoclast  controversy 

*  See  Jer.  iii.  G-9  and  xiii.  27;  Ezek.  xvi.  31-34. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XVII.  177 

of  tlie  eighth  and  ninth  centuries,  the  bishops  of 
Rome  stood  forth  persistently  as  the  advocates  and 
defenders  of  image  worship.  And  from  those  times 
to  the  present,  they  have  persisted  in  their  idola- 
tries,— to  the  scandal  of  the  Christian  name  with 
some  other  religions, — and  will  not  give  them  up. 
In  this  respect  she  has  fully  justified  the  symbolism 
before  us.  She  has  proved  herself  to  be  the  great 
whore  which  has  corrupted  the  nations. 

She  also  answers  to  the  representation  in  the 
chapter  before  us  in  respect  to  the  cruelties.  She  is 
*  drunk  with  the  blood  of  the  saints,  and  of  the  mar- 
tyrs of  Jesus.'  There  is  no  computing  the  murders 
of  God's  faithful  witnesses,  for  which  the  Papal 
harlot  is  responsible.  They  are,  I  had  almost  said, 
numberless.  If  any  one  doubts  the  truth  of  this 
representation,  let  him  consult  the  histories  of  the 
Albigenses  andWaldenses,  the  Protestants  of  France, 
and  the  martyrs  of  the  low  countries.  Let  him  go 
to  the  records  of  the  Inquisition  in  Spain  and  Italy, 
and  in  every  other  country  where  this  terrible  court 
has  been  established.  Rome  may  try  to  conceal 
these  horrible  tragedies,  but  she  cannot  cover  them 
up.  The  blood  of  ten  thousand  martyrs  is  at  this 
moment  crying  against  her  for  vengeance.  Drunk 
ivith  the  blood  of  the  saints  and  martyrs  of  Jesus — 
this  is  the  terrible  indictment  which  stands  against 

her  in  the  court  of  heaven. 

z 


178  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

We  have  seen  already  that  the  ten  horns  of  the 
beast,  are  the  ten  kingdoms  into  which  the  Western 
Empire  was  divided,  which  for  a  time  gave  their 
strength  and  power  unto  the  beast,  and  with  him 
made  war  Avith  the  Lamb.  But  it  shall  not  be  so 
always.  The  time  will  come  when  '  the  ten  horns 
shall  hate  the  whore,  and  shall  make  her  desolate 
and  naked,  and  shall  eat  her  flesh,  and  burn  her 
with  fire.'  To  a  great  extent,  this  period  has  come 
even  now.  Time  was,  when  Germany,  and  England, 
and  Scotland,  and  Holland,  and  Protestant  Switzer- 
land, were  giving  their  strength  to  the  beast  and 
his  paramour,  and  with  them  were  united  in  making 
war  upon  the  Lamb.  But  it  is  not  so  now.  These 
nations  have  long  since  renounced  this  base  allegi- 
ance, and  enlisted  themselves  on  the  other  side. 
And  other  nations  are  preparing  to  follow  them. 
From  present  appearances,  nothing  is  more  likely 
than  that  Spain,  and  France,  and  Austria,  and  Italy, 
may,  ere  long,  come  to  hate  the  whore  as  earnestly 
as  they  had  ever  loved  her,  and  will  unite  with  the 
other  Em'opean  kingdoms  to  make  her  desolate, 
and  to  burn  her  with  fire.  We  wait  the  issues  of 
these  great  events  with  confidence  and  prayer. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XVII.  179 


CHAPTER   XVI. 

THE  FALL  OF  THE  MYSTICAL  BABYLON. 

CHEAT  LAMEXTxVTION  ON  EARTH,  AND  GREAT  REJOICING  IN  HEAVEN, 

ON  ACCOUNT  OF  IT. 

REVELATION,  CHAP.  XVIH. 

WE  have  in  this  chapter  a  more  full  and  formal 
annunciation  of  the  fall  of  the  mystical  Ba- 
bylon— the  great  Papal,  persecuting  power — than 
in  any  previous  instance.  In  the  14th  chapter,  we 
heard  an  angel  crying :  '  Babylon  is  fallen,  is  fallen, 
that  great  city,  because  she  made  all  nations  drink 
of  the  wine  of  the  wrath  of  her  fornication.'  But 
here  the  cry  is  more  loudly  and  formally  repeated, 
and  the  feelings  of  different  characters,  both  on 
earth  and  in  heaven,  are  particularly  described. 

'After  these  things  I  saw  another  angel  come 
down  from  heaven,  having  great  power ;  and  the 
earth  was  lightened  with  his  glory.  And  he  cried 
mightily  with  a  strong  voice,  saying,  Babylon  the 
great  is  fallen,  is  fallen,  and  is  become  the  habita- 
tion of  devils,  and  the  hold  of  every  foul  spirit, 
and  a  cage  of  every  unclean  and  hateful  bird.  For 
all  nations  have  drunk  of  the  wine  of  the  wrath  of 
her  fornication,   and  the  kings  of  the  earth  have 


180  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

committed  fornication  ^vitli  lier,  and  tlie  merchants 
of  the  earth  are  waxed  rich  through  the  abundance 
of  her  delicacies.'  The  charge  here  is,  that  the 
whole  earth,  the  Roman  earth,  has  been  corrupted, 
more  or  less,  by  her  intercourse,  her  commerce,  and 
her  idolatries. 

*  And  I  heard  another  voice  from  heaven,  saying, 
Come  out  of  her,  my  people,  that  ye  be  not  par- 
takers of  her  sins,  and  that  ye  receive  not  of  her 
plagues :  for  her  sins  have  reached  unto  heaven, 
and  God  hath  remembered  her  iniquities. 

*  Reward  her  even  as  she  rewarded  you,  and 
double  unto  her  double  according  to  her  works : 
in  the  cup  which  she  hath  filled,  fill  to  her  double.' 
This  command  is  addressed  to  those  people  and 
nations  which  had  been  wronged  and  persecuted  by 
her.  And  they  are  called  upon  to  render  her  double 
for  her  sins  ;  not  double  what  she  deserves  at  the 
hands  of  God,  but  double  what  is  usually  inflicted 
by  injured  nations  upon  their  oppressors. 

*  How  much  she  hath  glorified  herself,  and  lived 
deliciously,  so  much  torment  and  sorrow  give  her : 
for  she  saith  in  her  heart,  I  sit  a  queen,  and  am  no 
widow,  and  shall  see  no  sorrow.  Therefore  shall 
her  plagues  come  in  one  day,  death,  and  mourning, 
and  famine ;  and  she  shall  be  utterly  burned  with 
fire  :  for  strong  is  the  Lord  God  who  judgeth  her ' 
(Rev.  xviii.  1-8). 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XVIIL  181 

Next  comes  the  lament  of  the  kings  of  the  earth, 
and  the  merchants  and  ship-masters — her  guilty 
confederates  and  traffickers — over  the  fall  and  ruin 
of  this  mighty  city. 

'  And  the  kings  of  the  earth,  who  have  committed 
fornication  and  lived  deliciously  with  her,  shall 
bewail  her,  and  lament  for  her,  when  they  shall  see 
the  smoke  of  her  burning,  standing  afar  off  for  fear 
of  her  torment,  saying,  Alas,  alas,  that  great  city 
Babylon,  that  mighty  city !  for  in  one  hour  is  thy 
judgment  come. 

'  And  the  merchants  of  the  earth  shall  weep 
and  mourn  over  her ;  for  no  man  buyeth  their  mer- 
chandise any  more.  .  .  .  They  shall  stand  afar  off 
for  the  fear  of  her  torment,  weeping  and  wailing, 
and  saying,  Alas,  alas  I  that  great  city,  that  was 
clothed  in  fine  linen,  and  purple,  and  scarlet,  and 
decked  with  gold,  and  precious  stones,  and  pearls ; 
for  in  one  hour  so  great  riches  is  come  to  nought.' 

'  And  every  ship-master,  and  as  many  as  trade 
by  sea,  stood  afar  off  and  cried,  when  they  saw  the 
smoke  of  her  burning,  saying.  What  city  is  like  unto 
this  great  city !  And  they  cast  dust  on  their  heads, 
and  cried,  weeping  and  wailing,  and  saying,  Alas, 
alas,  that  great  city !  wherein  were  made  rich  all 
that  had  ships  in  the  sea,  by  reason  of  her  costliness ; 
for  in  one  hour  she  is  made  desolate'  (Rev.  xviii. 
9-19). 


182  THE  APOCAL  YPSE  EXPLAINED : 

While  the  wicked  of  the  earth  are  thus  wailing 
and  lamenting  over  the  fall  of  this  mighty  and  cor- 
rupting city,  the  heavens  are  called  upon  to  lift  up 
their  voice  in  a  very  different  strain :  '  Rejoice  over 
her,  thou  heaven,  and  ye  holy  apostles  and  prophets ; 
for  God  hath  avenged  you  on  her '  (Rev.  xviii.  20). 

The  close  of  the  chapter  records  the  inevitable 
and  utter  ruin  of  this  doomed  city, — another  name 
for  Papal  Rome, — with  the  causes  which  produced 
it.  *  And  a  mighty  angel  took  up  a  stone  like  a 
great  millstone,  and  cast  it  into  the  sea,  saying. 
Thus  with  violence  sliall  that  great  city  Babylon 
be  thrown  down,  and  shall  be  found  no  more  at  all. 
And  the  voice  of  harpers,  and  musicians,  and  of 
pipers,  and  trumpeters,  shall  be  heard  no  more  at 
aU  in  thee :  and  no  craftsman,  of  whatsoever  craft 
he  be,  shall  be  found  any  more  in  thee ;  and  the 
sound  of  a  millstone  shall  be  heard  no  more  at 
all  in  thee ;  and  the  light  of  a  candle  shall  shine 
no  more  at  all  in  thee;  and  the  voice  of  the 
bridegroom  and  of  the  bride  shall  be  heard  no 
more  at  all  in  thee :  for  thy  merchants  were  the 
great  men  of  the  earth ;  for  by  thy  sorceries  were 
all  nations  deceived.  And  in  her  was  found  the 
blood  of  prophets,  and  of  saints,  and  of  all  that 
were  slain  upon  the  earth '  (Rev.  xviii.  21-24). 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XIX.  183 


CHAPTER    XYIL 

REJOICINGS  IN  HEAVEN  OVER  THE  FALL   OF  BABYLON. 
CHRIST'S  LAST  CONFLICT  AND  TRIUMPH  BEFORE  THE  MILLENNIUM. 

REVELATION,  CHAP.  XIX. 

THIS  chapter  opens  with  a  song  of  thanksgiving 
and  praise  to  God,  for  the  recent  destruction 
of  the  grand  enemy  of  His  Church  and  people. 
'  And  after  these  things  I  heard  a  great  voice  of 
much  people  in  heaven,  saying,  Alleluia  ;  Salvation, 
and  glory,  and  honour,  and  power  be  unto  the  Lord 
our  God  :  for  true  and  righteous  are  His  judgments  : 
for  He  hath  judged  the  great  whore,  w^hich  did 
corrupt  the  earth  with  her  fornication,  and  hath 
avenged  the  blood  of  His  servants  at  her  hand. 
And  again  they  said,  Alleluia !  And  her  smoke  rose 
up  for  ever  and  ever.  And  the  four  and  twenty 
elders,  and  the  four  living  creatures,  fell  down  and 
worshipped  God  that  sat  on  the  throne,  saying, 
Amen,  Alleluia !  And  a  voice  came  out  of  the 
throne,  saying.  Praise  our  God,  all  ye  His  servants, 
and  ye  that  fear  Him,  both  small  and  great.  And 
I  heard  as  it  were  the  voice  of  a  great  multude,  and 


184  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

as  the  voice  of  many  waters,  and  as  the  voice  of 
mighty  thunderings,  saying,  Alleluia !  for  the  Lord 
God  omnipotent  reigneth '  (Rev.  xix.  1—6). 

This  grand  paean  of  praise,  in  which  all  creatures 
in  heaven  seem  to  have  united,  being  over,  the 
revealing  angel  addresses  John  on  another  subject. 
'Let  us  be  glad  and  rejoice,  and  give  honour  to 
him :  for  the  marriage  of  the  Lamb  is  come,  and 
his  wife  hath  made  herself  ready.  And  to  her  was 
granted  that  she  should  be  arrayed  in  fine  linen, 
clean  and  white :  for  the  fine  linen  is  the  righteous- 
ness of  saints ;'  that  is,  it  symbolises,  sets  forth,  the 
righteousness  of  saints.  *And  he  saith  unto  me, 
Write,  Blessed  are  they  which  are  called  unto  the 
marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb.*  And  as  if  to  confirm 
the  glorious  revelation  here  made,  the  angel  saith 
farther  unto  John,  *  These  are  the  true  sayings  of 
God '  (Rev.  xix.  7-9). 

The  connection  between  Clirist  and  His  people 
is  continually  set  forth  in  the  Scriptures  by  that 
between  the  bridegroom  and  bride.  He  is  His 
Church's  bridegroom,  and  she  his  bride.  But  this 
endearing  relation,  though  subsisting  through  all 
the  previous  ages  of  darkness  and  conflict,  is  now 
to  be  more  publicly  and  solemnly  celebrated.  The 
Church  is  about  to  enter  on  the  comparative  purity 
and  blessedness  of  the  millennial  state.  She  is  to 
be  arrayed,  as  never  before,  in  a  robe  of  righteous- 


REVELATION,  CIIAF2 hU  XIX.  185 

ness — fine  linen,  clean  and  white.  In  view  of  what 
Avas  so  glorious  and  so  near  at  hand,  the  angel  had 
much  reason  to  say,  *  Blessed  are  they  that  are 
called  unto  the  marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb/ 

In  prospect  of  such  honours  and  blessedness  for 
the  Church,  the  Apostle  seems  to  have  been  quite 
overcome.  He  did  what  he  had  never  before  at- 
tempted, except  when  he  fell  at  the  feet  of  the 
glorified  Saviour  (Rev.  i.  17).  He  fell  at  the  feet 
of  the  angel  to  worship  him ;  perhaps  thinking  that 
he  was  the  Saviour.  But  he  was  instantly  and 
appropriately  rebuked.  '  See  thou  do  it  not :  I  am. 
thy  fellow  servant,  and  of  thy  brethren  that  have  the 
testimony  of  Jesus  :  Worship  God'  (Rev.  xix.  10). 

The  angel's  language  here  does  not  imply,  as 
some  have  thought,  that  he  was  the  glorified  spirit 
of  some  ancient  prophet  or  saint.  He  was  un- 
doubtedly an  angel,  as  he  is  here  called;  and  it  is  an 
honour  to  us  that  holy  angels  are  willing  to  acknow- 
ledge themselves  as  our  fellow  servants,  and  as 
brethren  to  all  those  who  have  the  testimony  of 
Jesus.  *  For,'  adds  the  angel,  in  a  very  pregnant 
passage,  '  the  testimony  of  Jesus  is  the  spirit  of 
prophecy.'  As  much  as  to  say,  '  Every  true  prophet 
or  preacher — every  one  who  has  the  true  spirit  of 
prophecy,  loill  testify  of  Jesus.  This  will  be  his  chief 
and  central  topic.  A  test  here  of  the  genuine  pro- 
phet's commission. 

2  A 


186  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

A  new  and  glorious  vision  is  now  presented  to 
the  view  of  tlic  admiring  Apostle.  As,  on  the 
opening  of  the  first  seal,  he  *saw  a  white  horse, 
and  he  that  sat  on  him  had  a  bow,  and  a  crown  was 
given  unto  him,  and  he  went  forth  conquering  and 
to  conquer ;'  so  here,  in  the  closmg  vision  of  the 
great  conflict,  the  same  divine  personage  is  pre- 
sented again.  *I  saw  heaven  opened,  and  behold 
a  white  horse ;  and  he  that  sat  upon  him  was  called 
Faithful  and  True  ;  and  in  righteousness  he  doth 
judge  and  make  war.  His  eyes  were  as  a  flame  of 
fire,  and  on  his  head  were  many  crowns ;  and  he 
had  a  name  written  that  no  man  knew  but  himself; 
and  he  was  clothed  in  a  vesture  dipped  in  blood : 
and  his  name  is  called  The  Word  of  God.  And  the 
armies  Avhich  were  in  heaven  followed  him  upon 
white  horses,  clothed  in  fine  linen,  white  and  clean. 
And  out  of  his  mouth  goeth  a  sharp  sword,  that 
with  it  he  should  smite  the  nations :  and  he  shall 
rule  them  with  a  rod  of  iron  :  and  he  treadeth  the 
wine-press  of  the  fierceness  and  wrath  of  Almighty 
God.  And  he  hath  on  his  vesture  and  on  his 
thigh  a  name  written,  KING  OF  KINGS,  AND 
LORD  OF  LORDS'  (Rev.  xix.  11-16). 

Such  was  the  appearance  and  the  retinue  of  the 
great  Son  of  God,  going  forth  to  the  last  conflict 
previous  to  the  commencement  of  His  millennial 
kingdom.    The  issue  of  the  conflict  may  be  gathered 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XIX.  187 

from  what  follows:  *  And  I  saw  an  angel  standing 
in  the  sun ;  and  he  cried  with  a  loud  voice,  saying 
to  all  the  fowls  that  fly  in  the  midst  of  heaven, 
Come  and  gather  yourselves  together  unto  the 
supper  of  the  great  God ;  that  ye  may  eat  the  flesh 
of  kings,  and  the  flesh  of  captains,  and  the  flesh  of 
mighty  men,  and  the  flesh  of  horses,  and  of  them 
that  sit  on  them,  and  the  flesh  of  all  men,  both  free 
and  bond,  both  small  and  great.  And  I  saw  the 
beast,  and  the  kings  of  the  earth,  and  their  armies, 
gathered  together  to  make  war  against  him  that 
sat  on  the  horse,  and  against  his  army.  And  the 
beast  was  taken,  and  with  him  the  false  prophet 
that  wrought  miracles  before  him,  with  which  he 
deceived  them  that  had  received  the  mark  of  the 
beast,  and  them  that  worshipped  his  image.  These 
both  were  cast  alive  into  a  lake  of  fire  burning  with 
brimstone.  And  the  remnant  were  slain  with  the 
sword  of  him  that  sat  upon  the  horse,  which  sword 
proceedeth  out  of  his  mouth :  and  all  the  fowls 
were  filled  with  their  flesh'  (Kev.  xix.  17—21). 

My  first  remark  in  regard  to  these  Scriptures 
is,  that  they  do  not  stand  alone  in  describing  the 
closing  conflict  before  the  millennium.  They  have 
been  preceded  by  several  others  ;  and  yet  the 
accounts  are  not  repetitions.  The  symbolism  is 
different,  and  they  present  different  phases  or  as- 
pects of  the  same  closing  scene.     Thus  the  seventh 


188  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

seal, — including,  as  it  does,  the  seven  trumpets, — 
runs  down  to  the  millennium:  For  when  the  seventh 
angel  had  sounded,  'there  ^vere  great  voices  in 
heaven,  saying,  The  kingdoms  of  this  ^vorld  have 
become  the  kingdoms  of  our  Lord  and  of  His  Christ, 
and  He  shall  reign  for  ever  and  ever'  (chap.  xi.  15). 
The  two  witnesses  continued  then*  testimony  to 
the  close  of  the  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  years 
(chap.  xi.  3).  And  the  same  may  be  said  of  the 
hiding  of  the  mystical  woman  in  the  wilderness 
(chap.  xii.  6),  and  the  tyranny  of  the  Popish  beasts 
(chap.  xiii.  5).  Both  these  continued  to  the  end  of 
the  twelve  hundred  and  sixty  years,  and  with  the 
closing  up  of  that  period,  the  millennium  com- 
mences. So  the  vintage  of  the  earth  described 
in  the  fourteenth  chapter,  and  the  pouring  out  the 
seventh  vial,  in  the  sixteenth,  and  the  fall  of 
Babylon  in  the  eighteenth, — these  all  present  the 
close  of  the  final  conflict — the  same  that  is  pre- 
dicted in  the  nineteenth  chapter.  As  I  have  said 
before,  none  of  these  predictions  reach  into  the 
millennium,  or  go  beyond  it.  They  all  terminate 
at  the  same  point,  presenting  different  views  of  the 
long  struggle  of  the  Church  with  its  mortal  enemies, 
and  of  the  closmg  conflict,  w^hich  brings  an  abiding 
peace.  I  deem  this  a  very  important  position  to  be 
taken  in  interpreting  the  Apocalypse — one  which 
tends  to  simplify  its  interpretation  and  make  it  plain. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XIX.  189 

It  Is  a  common  impression  among  Cliristlans  that, 
previous  to  the  millennium,  all  the  inhabitants  of 
the  earth  are  to  be  'converted.  But  the  Scriptures 
before  us,  and  other  Scriptures  referring  to  the  same 
event,  teach  a  different  doctrine.  In  bringing  in 
the  millennial  period,  vast  numbers  of  the  incor- 
rigible enemies  of  God  and  His  people  will  be  cut 
off. 

In  preparation  for  the  millennium,  the  gospel  will 
be  universally  diffused.  It  will  be  preached  for  a 
witness  to  all  nations.  Those  who  embrace  it,  and 
enrol  themselves  among  the  servants  of  Christ,  will 
be  safe.  But  those  who  persist  in  rejecting  it,  and 
in  opposing  the  triumphs  of  the  Son  of  God,  will  be 
taken  out  of  the  way.  As  much  as  this  is  indicated 
in  a  variety  of  Scriptures.  Thus,  in  Daniel,  the 
power  denoted  by  the  beast  and  the  little  horn,  is 
represented,  not  as  converted,  but  terribly  destroyed. 
'I  beheld  even  till  the  beast  was  slain,  and  his  body 
given  to  the  burning  flame'  (Dan.  vii.  11).  And  so 
of  Paul's  '  man  of  sin,'  and  '  son  of  perdition,'  it  is 
said,  '  whom  the  Lord  shall  consume  with  the  breath 
of  His  mouth,  and  destroy  with  the  brightness  of 
His  coming'  (2  Thess.  ii.  8).  And  the  same  view  is 
continually  presented  in  the  Kevelation.  There  is 
the  mustering  of  the  hosts  of  the  wicked,  and  the 
gathering  of  them  together  at  Armageddon  to  the 
battle   of  the  great  day  of  God  Almighty  (chap. 


190  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

xvi.).  There  is  the  account  of  the  last  vintage, 
when  the  wicked  of  the  earth  are  reaped,  and  cast 
together  *  into  the  great  "winepress  of  the  wrath  of 
God ;'  and  when  *  the  winepress  was  trodden  with- 
out the  city,  blood  came  out  of  the  winepress,  even 
unto  the  horses'  bridles,  for  the  space  of  one  thou- 
sand six  hundred  furlongs'  (chap.  xiv.  20).  And 
so  in  the  closing  verses  of  the  nineteenth  chapter : 
*A11  the  fowls  of  heaven  are  summoned  together 
unto  the  supper  of  the  gi'eat  God,  that  they  may 
eat  the  flesh  of  kings,  and  the  flesh  of  captains,  and 
the  flesh  of  mighty  men,  and  the  flesh  of  horses, 
and  of  them  that  sit  on  them,  and  the  flesh  of  all 
men,  both  free  and  bond,  both  small  and  great.' 
Here  certainly  is  a  symbolic  representation  of  great 
and  terrible  destruction  immediately  preceding  the 
introduction  of  the  millennium.  What  else  can  we 
make  of  it? 

There  is  indeed  an  intimation, — and  I  rejoice  to 
record  it, — that  some  of  those  who  persist  in  their 
hostility  to  Christ  almost  to  the  last,  are  to  be 
finally  saved.  '  The  remnant  were  slain  with  the 
sword  of  him  that  sat  upon  the  horse,  which  sword 
proceeded  out  of  his  mouth.'  The  sword  proceed- 
ing out  of  the  mouth  of  Chnst  I  understand  to  be 
*the  sword  of  the  Spirit,  which  is  the  Word  of 
God.'  A  remnant  of  those  who  had  enlisted  in 
opposition  to  the  Son  of  God,  and  had  persisted  in 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XIX.  191 

their  opposition  almost  to  the  last,  are  at  length 
delivered.  Their  enmity  is  slain  by  the  sharp  sword 
of  the  Spirit  proceeding  out  of  the  mouth  of  Christ ; 
and  when  all  with  whom  they  had  been  associated 
are  cut  off,  and  their  bodies  given  to  the  vultures 
for  a  prey,  they  are  saved  so  as  by  fire. 


192  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 


CHAPTER   XVIII. 

THE  MILLENNIUM. 

THE  GESTR.\L  RESURRECTION  AND  JUDGMENT,  AND  THE  FINAL 
DESTRUCTION  OF  THE  AMCKED. 

REVELATION,  CHAP.  XX. 

THE  beast  and  tlie  false  prophet,  with  all  those 
that  worshipped  their  image  and  followed  in 
their  train,  are  now  cut  off.  They  have  been  cast 
alive  into  the  lake  of  fii-e.  Only  one  enemy  remains; 
and  he, — the  instigator  of  all  that  the  Church  has 
ever  suffered, — is  the  most  formidable  of  all.  This 
is  the  old  dragon, — who  persecuted  the  woman, 
and  endeavoured  to  slay  her  son, — who  gave  to  the 
beast  '  his  power,  his  seat,  and  his  great  authority.* 
But  his  time  has  come,  at  length.  His  'judgment 
lingereth  not,  and  his  damnation  slumbereth  not.* 

'  I  saw  an  angel  come  down  from  heaven,  having 
the  key  of  the  bottomless  pit,  and  a  great  chain  in 
his  hand.  And  he  laid  hold  on  the  dragon,  that 
old  serpent,  which  is  the  Devil  and  Satan,  and  bound 
him  a  thousand  years,  and  cast  him  into  the  bottom- 
less pit,  and  shut  him  up,  and  set  a  seal  upon  him, 
that  he  should  deceive  the  nations  no  more,  till  the 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XX.  193 

thousand  years  should  be  fulfilled :  and  after  that 
he  must  be  loosed  a  little  season '  (Rev.  xx.  1—3). 

And  thus  the  millennium — that  season  of  rest 
and  peace  which  had  been  so  long  predicted  by  the 
prophets — is  ushered  in.  That  old  serpent,  who 
had  been  the  fomentor  of  all  wickedness,  from  the 
first  apostacy,  to  the  period  of  which  we  speak,  is 
seized  and  bound,  and  effectually  confined. 

The  description  here  is  indeed  symbolical ;  but 
as  much  as  this  is  certainly  intended  by  it,  that  the 
influence  of  Satan,  which  has  so  long  been  predomi- 
nant in  the  earth,  is  now  to  be  restrained.  He  is 
no  longer  to  '  go  about  like  a  roaring  lion,  seeking 
whom  he  may  devour.'  He  is  confined  in  liis  prison, 
and  shall  go  out  '  to  deceive  the  nations  no  more, 
until  the  thousand  years  shall  be  fulfilled.' 

And  what  is  to  follow  his  confinement  ?  What 
is  to  be  the  state  of  things  on  the  earth  ? 

'  And  I  saw  thrones,  and  they  sat  upon  them, 
and  judgment  was  given  unto  them :  and  I  saw  the 
souls  of  them  that  were  beheaded  for  the  witness  of 
Jesus,  and  for  the  word  of  God,  and  which  had  not 
worshipped  the  beast,  neither  his  image,  neither  had 
received  his  mark  upon  their  foreheads,  or  on  their 
hands ;  and  they  lived  and  reigned  with  Christ  a 
thousand  years.  But  the  rest  of  the  dead  lived  not 
again  until  the  thousand  years  were  finished.  This 
is  the  first  resurrection.     Blessed  and  holy  is  he 

2  B 


194  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED : 

that  liatli  part  in  the  first  resurrection :  on  such  the 
second  death  hath  no  power ;  but  they  shall  be 
priests  of  God  and  of  Cln-ist,  and  shall  reign  with 
Him  a  thousand  years '  (Rev.  xx.  4— (3). 

It  is  to  be  carefully  noted  that  these  verses,  like 
those  preceding  them,  are  entirely  symbolical.  In- 
terpreters not  a  few  have  blundered  here.  The 
verses  just  quoted  they  have  interpreted  literally ; 
and  hence  all  their  fancies  respecting  a  literal,  mil- 
lennial resurrection  of  the  saints,  and  the  personal 
reign  of  Christ  with  them  on  the  earth.  Interpreted 
symbolically,  as  it  must  be,  like  the  rest  of  the 
chapter,  the  passage  gives  no  countenance  to  any 
such  delusions :  '  And  I  saw  thrones,  and  they  sat 
upon  them .  and  I  saw  the  souls  of  them  that  were 
beheaded  for  the  witness  of  Jesus,  and  for  the  word 
of  God,  and  which  had  not  worshipped  the  beast, 
neither  his  image ;  and  they  lived  and  reigned  with 
Christ  a  thousand  years.'  It  will  be  observed  that 
here  is  a  prediction  of  the  resurrection,  not  of  all 
the  holy  dead  which  had  left  the  world  previous  to 
the  millennium,  but  only  of  the  martyrs  who  had 
*  been  beheaded  for  the  witness  of  Jesus,  and  for 
the  word  of  God.'  Nor  are  the  bodies  even  of 
these  to  be  raised,  but  only  their  souls. 

Stripped  of  its  symbolical  dress,  and  interpreted, 
as  it  must  be,  this  passage  merely  sets  forth  the 
state  of  the  world   during  the   millennial  period. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XX.  195 

Christ  is  to  reign,  not  bodily,  but  spiritually,  on  the 
earth,  and  His  people  are  to  reign  spiritually  with 
Him.  The  martyrs  are  to  be  raised  in  spirit,  not  in 
the  body.  The  spirit  of  the  martyrs  is  to  be  predo- 
minant. In  other  words,  the  millennium  is  to  be  a 
time  of  pre-eminent  holiness.  The  inhabitants  of 
the  world  generally  are  to  be  as  holy  as  the  martyrs. 
This  resurrection  and  prevalence  of  the  martyr 
spirit  is  the  first  resurrection.  Blessed  and  holy 
are  they  who  have  part  in  such  a  resurrection. 
Over  them,  of  course,  the  second  death  has  no 
power,  but  they — in  successive  generations — shall 
live  and  spiritually  reign  with  Christ  a  thousand 
years.  But  the  rest  of  the  dead — the  unholy  dead 
— are  not  to  live  again  in  spirit ;  in  other  words, 
their  spirit  is  not  to  prevail  until  the  thousand  years 
are  finished. 

Such  I  conceive  to  be  the  meaning  of  this  much 
disputed  passage.  And  thus  interpreted,  is  it  not 
full  of  glorious  meaning — more  glorious  than  any 
literal  interpretation  could  be  ?  What  can  be  better 
than  a  universal  and  spiritual  reign  with  Christ — a 
time  of  pre-eminent  knowledge  and  holiness?  The 
earth  will  then  be  full  of  the  knowledge  and  love  of 
God,  as  the  waters  fill  the  channels  of  the  deep. 
There  will  no  longer  be  any  occasion  for  one  to  say 
to  another.  Know  the  Lord,  because  all  shall  know 
Him,  from  the  least  even  unto  the  greatest. 


19G  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

As  to  the  duration  of  the  millennium,  it  is  re- 
peatedly promised  that  it  shall  continue  a  thousand 
years.  Is  this  to  he  understood  literally ;  or,  is  it  to 
be  understood — as  numbers  denoting  time  some- 
times are  in  prophetical  language — tropically,  a  day 
standing  for  a  year  ? 

I  have  before  shown  that,  in  interpreting  the 
prophecies,  we  are  at  liberty — where  the  connec- 
tion and  sense  require  it  (as  they  certainly  do 
in  many  instances),  to  substitute  a  year  for  a  day. 
But  does  the  connection  or  sense  require  any  such 
substitution  here?  I  cannot  say  that  they  do. 
I  incline  rather  to  the  opinion  that  they  require  a 
literal  interpretation.  If,  in  estimating  the  duration 
,of  the  millennium,  we  are  to  substitute  a  year  for  a 
day,  then  this  season  of  rest  and  peace  will  continue 
360,000  years.  But  in  this  period  the  earth  would 
be  entirely  filled  with  inhabitants, — so  filled,  accord- 
ing to  some  computations,  as  not  to  allow  a  square 
foot  to  each  individual.  Besides,  there  is  to  be  a 
defection  at  the  close  of  the  millennium ;  and  if  this 
is  to  continue  360,000  years,  such  an  event  is  scarcely 
conceivable.  My  belief  therefore  is,  that  what  we 
call  the  millennium  will  be  a  literal  millennium^ — a 
thousand  years. 

The  Last  Defection  and  its  Issue. 

*  And  when  the  thousand  years  are  expired,  Satan 
shall  be  loosed  out  of  his  prison,  and  shall  go  out  to 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XX.  197 

deceive  the  nations  that  are  in  the  four  quarters  of 
the  earth,  Gog  and  Magog,  to  gather  them  together 
to  battle:  the  number  of  whom  is  as  the  sand  of 
the  sea.  And  they  went  up  on  the  breadth  of 
the  earth,  and  compassed  the  camp  of  the  saints 
about,  and  the  beloved  city :  and  fire  came  dow^n 
from  God  out  of  heaven,  and  devoured  them.  And 
the  devil  that  deceived  them  was  cast  into  the  lake 
of  fire  and  brimstone,  where  the  beast  and  the  false 
prophet  are,  and  shall  be  tormented  day  and  night 
for  ever  and  ever '  (Eev.  xx.  7—10). 

Second- Advent  interpreters  have  found  it  diffi- 
cult to  account  for  the  great  defection  at  the  close 
of  the  millennium ;  but  with  sober  views  as  to  the 
state  of  things  during  the  millennium,  this  event, 
though  most  unreasonable  in  itself,  is  not  altogether 
unaccountable. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  millennium 
will  not  change  the  natures  of  men.  Children  will 
be  born  then,  as  they  are  now,  depraved  creatures, 
and  will  need,  as  we  do,  to  be  born  again,  in  order 
to  see  the  kingdom  of  God.  To  be  sure — in  the 
absence  of  Satanic  temptations,  and  under  the  influ- 
ence of  the  best  means,  and  in  the  midst  of  special 
outpourings  of  the  Holy  Spirit — they  will  be  ge- 
nerally and  early  converted.  They  will  also  be 
deeply  sanctified.  Perhaps  not  every  individual  on 
the  face  of  the  earth  at  that  period  will  be  holy ;  but 


198  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

this  will  be  true  of  mankind  generally.  Keligion 
will  predominate  over  all  other  interests.  '  The 
kingdom,  and  dominion,  and  greatness  of  the  king- 
dom mider  the  whole  heaven,  will  be  given  to  the 
people  of  the  saints  of  the  Most  High.'  And  this 
state  of  things  will  continue,  generation  after  gener- 
ation, for  a  thousand  years. 

But  as  this  period  draws  to  a  close.  Satan  will 
be  let  loose,  and  his  seductions  will  begin  to  pre- 
vail. At  the  same  time.  Divine  influences  will  be 
comparatively  withdrawn.  God  permits  this  state 
of  things  that  he  may  show,  in  one  more  example, 
what  sin  and  Satan  are,  and  (if  left  to  themselves) 
what  they  will  do.  A  generation  will  soon  come 
up,  haters  of  God,  despisers  of  His  truth,  and  the 
enemies  of  His  people.  They  will  be  restive  under 
the  restraints  of  the  gospel,  and  will  resolve  to 
thi'ow  them  oif.  *  We  have  been  curbed  and  ham- 
pered by  this  religion  long  enough.  The  world 
must  have  more  liberty.  Let  us  break  His  bands 
asunder,  and  cast  away  His  cords  from  us.' 

Knowing  what  human  nature  is,  when  exposed 
to  new  temptations  and  free  from  spiritual  re- 
straints, we  can  easily  conceive  how  this  thing  will 
work.  A  great  party  will  soon  be  formed  in  oppo- 
sition to  Christ  and  His  people,  and  every  means 
will  be  resorted  to,  to  enlist  the  world  against  the 
gospel.     If  other  methods  fail,  a  resort  at  length 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XX.  199 

may  be  had  to  arms.  A  vast  army  may  be  gathered, 
Gog  and  Magog,  and  all  the  wicked  of  every  name. 
Thev  will  be  in  number  as  the  sand  of  the  sea,  and 
will  compass  the  camp  of  the  saints  about,  and  the 
beloved  city. 

But  their  end  is  come.  They  shall  proceed 
no  farther.  The  saints  will  not  be  required  to 
lift  a  weapon  or  to  strike  a  blow  in  this  fearful 
conflict.  Suddenly,  '  fire  comes  down  from  God  out 
of  heaven,' — perhaps  the  fires  of  the  last  conflagra- 
tion,— and  consumes  them  all.  And  the  devil 
that  deceived  them  is  cast  into  the  lake  of  fire  and 
brimstone,  where  the  beast  and  the  false  prophet 
are,  and  shall  be  tormented  day  and  night  for  ever 
and  ever. 

The  Last  Judgment  and  Final  Destruction  of 
the  Wicked. 

*  And  I  saw  a  great  white  throne,  and  Him  that 
sat  on  it,  from  whose  face  the  earth  and  the  heaven 
fled  away ;  and  there  was  found  no  place  for  them. 
And  I  saw  the  dead,  small  and  great,  stand  before 
God ;  and  the  books  were  opened :  and  another 
book  was  opened  which  is  the  book  of  life  :  and  the 
dead  were  judged  out  of  those  things  which  were 
written  in  the  books,  according  to  their  works. 
And  the  sea  gave  up  the  dead  which  were  in  it ; 
and  death  and  hell  delivered  up  the  dead  which 
were  in  them :  and  they  were  judged  every  man 


200  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

according  to  their  works.  And  death  and  hell  were 
cast  into  the  lake  of  fire.  This  is  the  second  death. 
And  whosoever  was  not  found  written  in  the  book 
of  life  was  cast  into  the  lake  of  fire'  (Rev.  xx. 
11-15). 

The  account  here  given  of  the  last  judgment  is 
very  like  to  that  in  other  parts  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment,— more  especially  to  our  Saviour's  account  of  it 
in  Mat.  xxv.  31—46.  It  comes  in,  in  the  right  place, 
and  is  one  of  the  incontrovertible  proof-texts  going 
to  establish  the  fact  of  such  a  scene.  The  fleeing 
away  of  earth  and  heaven  before  the  face  of  the 
Judge  refers  to  the  general  conflagration  of  the  last 
day,  when  *  the  heavens  shall  pass  away  with  a 
great  noise,  the  elements  shall  melt  with  fervent 
heat,  the  earth  also  and  the  works  that  are  therein 
shall  be  burned  up '  (2  Pet.  iii.  10). 

The  general  resuiTection  is  noted  in  the  follow- 
ing passage :  '  The  sea  gave  up  the  dead  which 
were  in  it,  and  death  and  hell  gave  up  the  dead 
which  were  in  them.'  Death  and  hell  are  here 
personified,  denoting  the  whole  realm  of  death  and 
the  grave.  The  original  word,  a3»?Cj  here  translated 
hell,  is  used  to  signify  the  grave,  as  it  often  does 
in  other  parts  of  the  Bible.  The  meaning  is,  that 
all  the  dead,  whether  on  the  earth,  or  under  it,  or 
in  the  sea,  are  raised  and  brought  together  to  the 
judgment.     And  as  there  will  be  no  more  temporal 


REVELATION,  CHAPTER  XX.  201 

dissolution,  death  and  the  grave  are  represented  as 
destroyed.     They  are  cast  into  the  lake  of  fire. 

Among  the  books  here  spoken  of  is  the  book  of 
God's  remembrance,  in  which  is  recorded  every  act 
of  every  individual  of  the  human  race,  and  out  of 
which  every  one  is  to  be  judged  according  to  his 
works.  '  Who  will  bring  every  work  into  judgment, 
with  every  secret  thing,  whether  it  be  good,  or 
whether  it  be  evil '  (Ecc.  xii.  14). 

In  the  book  of  life  are  securely  recorded  the 
names  of  all  God's  people.  'And  whosoever  was 
not  found  written  in  the  book  of  life  was  cast  into 
the  lake  of  fire'  (Rev.  xx.  15).  Such  is  to  be  the 
end  of  all  the  wicked  of  the  earth.  '  Who  shall 
be  punished  with  everlasting  destruction  from  the 
presence  of  the  Lord,  and  from  the  glory  of  His 
power  (2  Thess.  i.  9). 


3  0 


202  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

GLORIOUS  DESTDn'ATION  OF  THE  RIGHTEOUS  —  SYM- 
BOLICAL REPRESENTATION  OF  THE  CHURCH  IN 
HEAVEN CONCLUSION. 

REVELATION,  CHAPS.  XXI.,  XXII. 

THE  multitude  of  the  wicked  being  thus  dis- 
posed of,  our  attention  is  next  called  to  the 
final  destination  of  the  righteous :  '  I  saw  a  new 
heaven  and  a  new  earth  ;  for  the  first  heaven  and 
the  first  earth  were  passed  away;  and  there  was 
no  more  sea  (Rev.  xxi.  1). 

The  heaven  here  spoken  of  was  the  visible 
heaven — the  firmament.  The  first  heaven  and 
earth  have  passed  away,  being  consumed  in  the 
fires  of  the  general  conflagration.  In  place  of  them, 
John  saw  a  new  heaven  and  a  new  earth.  So 
Peter  concludes  his  account  of  the  destruction  of 
the  world  by  saying,  '  We  look  for  new  heavens 
and  a  new  earth,  wherein  dwelleth  righteousness ' 
(2  Pet.  iii.  13).  Whether  this  new  earth  is  to  be 
reconstructed  from  the  materials  of  the  former 
earth,  I  pretend  not  to  say.      The  phrase  may  be 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  XXL,  XXIL         20B 

used  as  a  symbol  to  denote  the  final,  glorious  abode 
of  God's  people. 

John  is  next  shown  the  glories  of  the  heavenly 
Church,  under  the  symbol  of  a  holy  and  beautiful 
city,  coming  down  from  God  out  of  heaven,  and 
destined  to  rest,  apparently,  on  the  new  earth. 

*And  I  John  saw  the  holy  city,  new  Jerusalem, 
coming  down  from  God  out  of  heaven,  prepared  as 
a  bride  adorned  for  her  husband.  And  I  heard  a 
great  voice  out  of  heaven,' — probably  the  voice  of 
an  angel, — '  saying,  Behold,  the  tabernacle  of  God 
is  with  men,  and  He  will  dwell  with  them,' — in  His 
tabernacle — 'and  they  shall  be  His  people,  and  God 
himself  shall  be  with  them,  and  be  their  God.  And 
God  shall  wipe  away  all  tears  from  their  eyes ;  and 
there  shall  be  no  more  death,  neither  sorrow,  nor 
crying,  neither  shall  there  be  any  more  pain :  for 
the  former  things  are  passed  away.  '  And  He 
that  sat  upon  the  throne,'  —  the  Messiah,  — 
'  said,  Behold,  I  make  all  things  new,' — a  new 
heaven  and  a  new  earth,  and  a  new  order  of  things 
to  correspond  with  that  creation.  '  And  He  said 
unto  me.  Write,' — record  what  you  see  and  hear, — 
'  for  these  words  are  true  and  faithful.  And  He  said 
unto  me.  It  is  done.'  The  great  work  of  redemption 
is  accomplished ;  the  drama  of  this  world's  history 
is  closed ;  the  redeemed  are  all  gathered  in ;  the 
wicked  are  cut  off;  truth  and  holiness  are  trium- 


204  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

pliant ;  and  all  tilings  are  prepared  for  the  eternal 
state.  '  I  am  Alpha  and  Omega,  the  beginning  and 
the  end :  I  will  give  unto  him  that  is  athirst  of  the 
fountain  of  the  water  of  life  freely.  He  that  over- 
cometli  shall  inherit  all  things ;  and  I  will  be  his 
God,  and  he  shall  be  my  son.  But  the  fearful,  and 
unbelieving,  and  the  abominable,  and  murderers, 
and  whoremongers,  and  sorcerers,  and  idolaters, 
and  all  liars,  shall  have  their  part  in  the  lake  which 
burneth  with  fire  and  brimstone  :  which  is  the  second 
death '  (Rev.  xxi.  6-8). 

As  yet,  John  had  got  but  a  glimpse  of  the  holy 
city — the  new  Jerusalem — the  representative  of  the 
glorified  Church  ;  but  now  he  is  to  be  favoured  with 
a  particular  view  of  it ;  accordingly ;  '  There  came 
unto  me  one  of  the  seven  angels  which  had  the 
seven  vials  full  of  the  seven  last  plagues,  and  talked 
w^ith  me,  saying.  Come  hither,  I  will  shew  thee  the 
bride,  the  Lamb's  wife.  And  he  carried  me  away  in 
the  spirit' — not  bodily — '  to  a  great  and  high  moun- 
tain,'— where  the  best  view  possible  could  be  had, — 
*  and  shewed  me  that  great  city,  the  holy  Jerusa- 
lem, descending  out  of  heaven  from  God,  having  the 
glory  of  God  ;  and  her  light  was  like  unto  a  stone 
most  precious,  even  like  a  jasper-stone,  clear  as 
crystal ;  and  had  a  wall  gi'eat  and  high,  and  had 
twelve  gates,  and  at  the  gates  twelve  angels,  and 
names  written  thereon,  which  are  the  names  of  the 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  XXL,  XXIL         205 

twelve  tribes  of  the  children  of  Israel :  on  the  east, 
three  gates ;  on  the  north,  three  gates ;  on  the 
south,  three  gates ;  and  on  the  west,  three  gates. 
And  the  wall  of  the  city  had  twelve  foundations ' 
— foundation-stones — 'and  in  them  the  names  of 
the  twelves  apostles  of  the  Lamb'  (Rev.  xxi.  9-14). 

There  can  be  no  stronger  proof  of  the  unity,  the 
identity,  of  God's  Church,  under  both  dispensations, 
than  is  here  furnished.  We  have  here  a  most 
splendid  city — the  bride,  the  Lamb's  wife — the 
emblem  and  representative  of  the  glorified  Church. 
On  the  twelve  gates  of  the  city  are  inscribed  the 
names  of  the  twelve  tribes  of  the  children  of  Israel,  and 
on  the  twelve  foundation-stones  the  names  of  the 
twelve  apostles  of  the  Lamb,  '  Built  upon  the 
foundation  of  the  apostles  and  prophets,  Jesus 
Christ  himself  being  the  chief  corner  stone '  (Eph. 
ii.  20). 

'  And  he ' — the  angel — '  that  talked  with  me  had 
a  golden  reed  to  measure  the  city,  and  the  gates 
thereof,  and  the  wall  thereof.  And  the  city  lieth 
four  square,  and  the  length  is  as  large  as  the  breadth. 
And  he  measured  the  city  ^vith  the  reed,  twelve 
thousand  furlongs,' — 1500  miles  in  circumference — 
375  miles  on  each  side.  *  The  length,  and  the 
breadth,  and  the  height  of  it  are  equal.'  What  a 
city !  The  Church  of  the  first  born,  whose  names 
are  written  in  heaven!  (Rev.  xxi.  15,  16), 


206  rilE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

'  And  he  measured  the  wall  thereof,  an  hundred 
and  forty  and  four  cubits,  according  to  the  measure 
of  a  man  ;  that  is,  of  the  angel.'  The  wall  was  of  a 
moderate  height,  compared  with  the  extent  of  the 
city.  *  And  the  building  of  the  wall  of  it  was  of 
jasper ;  and  the  city  was  pure  gold,  like  unto  clear 
glass.  And  the  foundations  of  the  wall  of  the  city 
were  garnished  with  all  manner  of  precious  stones.' 
(We  omit  the  names  of  the  gems  which  went  into  the 
foundations.)  *  And  the  twelve  gates  were  twelve 
pearls ;  every  several  gate  was  of  one  pearl :  and  the 
street  of  the  city  was  pure  gold,  as  it  were  trans- 
parent glass.  And  I  saw  no  temple  therein  :  for  the 
Lord  God  Almighty  and  the  Lamb  are  the  temple 
of  it.'  Every  place  in  the  city  is  a  temple, — a  place 
of  worship.  *  And  the  city  had  no  need  of  the  sun, 
neither  of  the  moon,  to  shine  in  it ;  for  the  glory  of 
God  did  lighten  it,  and  the  Lamb  is  the  light 
thereof.  And  the  nations  of  them  which  are  saved 
shall  walk  in  the  light  of  it :  and  the  kings  of  the 
earth ' — that  are  saved — '  do  bring  their  glory  and 
honour  into  it,' — everything  which  they  regard  as 
constituting  to  their  glory,  laying  it  all  down  at  the 
feet  of  the  Saviour,  and  consecrating  and  devoting 
it  all  to  His  service.  '  And  the  gates  of  it  shall  not 
be  shut  at  all  by  day ;  for  there  shall  be  no  night 
there.  And  they  shall  biing  the  glory  and  honour 
of  the  nations   into   it.      And  there   shall    in    no 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  XXL,  XXIL         207 

wise  enter  into  it  anything  that  defiletli,  neither 
whatsoever  worketh  abomination,  or  maketh  a  lie ; 
but  they  which  are  written  in  the  Lamb's  book  of 
life'(Rev.xxi.  17-27). 

'  And  he  shewed  me  a  pure  river  of  water  of 
life,  clear  as  crystal,  proceeding  out  of  the  throne 
of  God  and  of  the  Lamb.  In  the  midst  of  the 
street  of  it,' — the  city — '  and  on  either  side  of  the 
river,  was  there  the  tree  of  life,  which  bare  twelve 
manner  of  fruits,  and  yielded  her  fruit  every  month : 
and  the  leaves  of  the  tree  were  for  the  healing 
of  the  nations '  (Rev.  xxii.  1,  2). 

The  imagery  here  is  borrowed  from  the  garden 
of  Eden,  and,  more  closely,  from  the  mystical  city 
described  by  Ezekiel,  in  some  of  the  last  chapters 
of  his  prophecy.^  In  each  of  them  is  a  river, 
and  in  each  is  the  tree  of  life,  '  the  fruit  where- 
of,' says  Ezekiel,  'shall  be  for  meat,  and  th6 
leaf  thereof  for  medicine,' — or  as  John  has  it, — 
'  for  the  healing  of  the  nations.' — {See  Ezek.  xlvii. 
12.) 

'  And  there  shall  be  no  more  curse :  but  the 
throne  of  God  and  the  Lamb  shall  be  in  it ;  and  His 
servants  shall  serve  Him :  and  they  shall  see  His 
face ;  and  His  name  shall  be  in  their  foreheads.  And 
there  shall  be  no  night  there ;  and  they  need  no 
candle,   neither  light   of  the   sun  ;    for  the  Lord 

^  See  Appendix. 


208  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

God  giveth  them  liglit :   and  tliey  shall  reign  for 
ever  and  ever'^  (Rev.  xxii.  3—5). 

What  follows  may  be  regarded  as  the  epilogue 
or  conclusion  of  this  wonderful  book.  'And  he' — 
the  angel — '  said  unto  me,  These  sayings  are  faith- 
ful and  true :  and  the  Lord  God  of  the  holy  pro- 
phets sent  His  angel  to  shew  unto  His  servants 
the  things  which  must  shortly  be  done.'  And  then, 
speaking  in  the  name  of  Christ,  or  quoting  a  decla- 
ration of  Christ,  the  angel  goes  on  to  say :  '  Behold, 
I  come  quickly :  blessed  is  he  that  keepeth  the  say- 
ings of  the  prophecy  of  this  book'  (Rev.  xxii.  6,  7). 

Regarding  these  as  the  words  of  Christ,  and  the 
speaker  as  none  other  than  Christ  himself,  John  is 
about  to  worship  him  :  '  And  I  John  saw  these 
things  and  heard  them.  And  when  I  had  heard  and 
seen,  I  fell  down  to  worship  before  the  feet  of  the 
angel  which  shewed  me  these  things.  Then  saith 
he  unto  me,  See  thou  do  it  not ;  for  I  am  thy  fellow 
servant,  and  of  thy  brethren  tlie  prophets,  and  of 
them  which  keep  the  sayings  of  this  book :  worship 
God '  (Rev.  xxii.  8,  9). 

The   language   here  does   not   imply  that   the 

1  We  are  not  to  regard  the  city  here  described  as  the  residence  of 
God's  glorified  Churcli,  but  rather  as  a  symbol  of  the  Church  itself. 
The  Church  is  often  represented  in  Scripture  as  a  city,  a  building. 
We  believe  there  is  such  a  place  as  heaven.  '  I  go  to  prepare  a  place 
for  you.'  But  where  this  locality  is,  and  what  its  structure,  form,  or 
extent,  we  have  no  knowledge. 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  XXL,  XXIL         209 

speaker  was  the  spirit  of  some  old  prophet.  He 
was  an  angel — one  of  the  seven  angels  who  in- 
flicted the  seven  last  plagues.  Still,  he  was  a 
prophet  like  John,  and  a  fellow  servant  with  him 
of  the  same  God  and  Saviour. 

'  Then  saith  he  ' — the  angel — '  unto  me,  Seal 
not  the  sayings  of  the  prophecy  of  this  book ;  for 
the  time  is  at  hand.'  Seal  them  not  up,  as  words 
not  lawful  to  be  uttered,  but  publish  them  abroad 
for  a  comfort  to  thy  brethren,  and  a  warning  to  the 
wdcked.  '  He  that  is  unjust,  let  him  be  unjust  still ; 
and  he  which  is  filthy,  let  him  be  filthy  still ;  and 
he  that  is  righteous,  let  him  be  righteous  still ;  and 
he  that  is  holy,  let  him  be  holy  still.'  As  much  as 
to  say,  There  will  be  no  more  changes.  Probation 
is  ended.  The  work  of  redemption  is  closed.  The 
wicked  have  gone  away  into  the  lake  of  fire.  The 
righteous  have  been  received  to  everlasting  habita- 
tions. '  He  that  is  unjust,  let  him  be  unjust  still ; 
and  he  that  is  holy,  let  him  be  holy  still'  (Rev. 
xxii.  10,  11). 

Personating  Christ,  as  he  was  instructed  to  do, 
the  angel  continues :  '  Behold  I  come  quickly,  and 
my  reward  is  with  me,  to  give  to  every  man  accord- 
ing as  his  work  shall  be.  I  am  Alpha  and  Omega, 
the  beginning  and  the  end,  the  first  and  the  last. 
Blessed  are  they  that  do  His  commandments,  that 

they  may  have  a  right  to  the  tree  of  life,  and  may 

2  D 


210  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

enter  in  througli  the  gates  into  the  city.  For  with- 
out'— without  the  heavenly  city,  in  the  regions  of 
darkness  and  woe — ^are  dogs,  and  sorcerers,  and 
whoremongers,  and  mui'derers,  and  idolaters,  and 
whosoever  loveth  and  maketh  a  lie'  (Rev.  xxii. 
12-15). 

All  that  are  without  are  not  only  sufferers,  but 
sinners.  And  they  will  sin  and  suffer  for  ever. 
They  repent  not  of  their  evil  deeds. 

The  Lord  Jesus,  who  had  spoken  by  His  angel, 
now  speaks  in  His  own  person :  '  I  Jesus  have  sent 
mine  angel  to  testify  unto  you  these  things  in  the 
Churches.  I  am  the  root  and  the  offspring  of  David, 
and  the  bright  and  morning  star.  And  the  Spirit  and 
the  bride  say,  Come.  And  let  him  that  heareth  say, 
Come.  And  let  him  that  is  athirst  come.  And  who- 
soever will,  let  him  take  the  water  of  life  freely ' 
(Rev.  xxii.  16-17). 

The  closing  words  of  the  book  seem  to  be  those 
of  John  himself.  *I  testify  unto  every  man  that 
heareth  the  words  of  the  prophecy  of  this  book.  If 
any  man  shall  add  unto  these  things,  God  shall  add 
unto  him  the  plagues  that  are  written  in  this  book : 
And  if  any  man  shall  take  away  from  the  words  of 
the  book  of  this  prophecy,  God  shall  take  away  his 
part  out  of  the  book  of  life,  and  out  of  the  holy  city, 
and  from  the  things  which  are  written  in  this  book. 
He   which   testifieth   these   things' — i.e.,   Clnist — 


REVELATION,  CHAPTERS  XXL,  XXI L         211 

*  saith,  Surely  I  come  quickly  :  Ameu.'  And  to  this 
the  writer  responds,  '  Even  so,  come.  Lord  Jesus. 
The  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  be  with  you  all, 
Amen'  (Rev.  xxii.  18-21). 

Thus  sweetly  and  delightfully  does  this  blessed 
book  close,  bearing  as  it  were  the  music  of  heaven 
upon  the  listening  ear.  0  thou  Root  and  Offspring 
of  David ;  thou  Bright  and  Morning  Star :  conde- 
scend to  guide  us  through  the  remaining  darkness 
of  our  pilgrimage,  till  we  are  ushered  into  the  sun- 
light of  eternal  day ! 


212  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 


CHAPTER    XX.    • 

THE  SONGS  OP  THE  APOCALYPSE. 

"\0  inconsiderable  part  of  the  book  of  Revelation 
-L  1  consists  of  songs — songs  of  praise  to  God 
and  the  Lamb.  And  it  is  to  be  remembered  that 
these  are  all  of  them  heavenly  songs,  —  full  of 
earnestness,  and  glowing  with  the  spirit  of  heaven, — 
sung  on  different  occasions  by  the  rapt  choirs  above. 

We  have  a  few  specimens  of  heavenly  songs — 
and  but  a  few — in  other  parts  of  the  Bible.  There 
is  the  Song  of  the  Seraphim,  in  the  sixth  chapter  of 
Isaiah :  *  Holy,  holy,  holy  is  the  Lord  of  hosts,  the 
whole  earth  is  full  of  His  glory.'  There  is  the  Song 
of  the  Angels  at  the  birth  of  Christ ;  *  Glory  to  God 
in  the  highest ;  peace  on  earth  and  good  will 
towards  men.'  But  in  the  Revelation  we  have 
many  such  songs ;  and  it  seems  important  that 
they  should  receive  a  more  particular  consideration 
than  we  have  been  able  to  give  them  in  the  fore- 
going chapters. 

There  is,  in  the  first  place,  the  Song  of  the 
living  creatures,  or  cherubim,  on  our  first  introduc- 
tion to   them.      '  They   rest   not   day   and   night 


SONGS  OF  THE  APOCALYPSE.  213 

saying,  Holy,  holy,  holy,  Lord  God  Almighty, 
which  was,  and  is,  and  is  to  come.'  This  is  very 
like  the  song  of  the  seraphim  in  Isaiah,  —  one 
continual  ascription  of  holiness  to  the  Lord.  In 
connection  with  this,  the  fonr  and  tw^enty  elders 
present  themselves  before  God,  in  a  posture  of  the 
utmost  humility  and  reverence,  falling  down  in  His 
presence,  casting  their  crowns  at  His  feet,  and  say- 
ing, 'Thou  art  worthy,  0  Lord,  to  receive  glory, 
and  honour,  and  power ;  for  Thou  hast  created  all 
things,  and  for  Thy  pleasure  they  are  and  weve 
created'  (Rev.  iv.  8—11). 

This  is  equivalent  to  the  saying  of  Solomon, 
'  The  Lord  hath  made  all  things  for  Himself  (Pro v. 
xvi.  4) — i.e.  to  promote  His  glory,  and  contribute 
to  His  praise.  This  song  of  the  elders  and  the 
cherubim  was  sung  on  no  particular  occasion,  and 
may  be  regarded  as  a  specimen  of  their  daily,  con- 
tinual worship. 

Next,  we  have  the  new  Song,  sung  by  the 
elders  and  the  cherubim,  when  the  Lamb  came  for- 
ward and  took  the  book  out  of  the  hand  of  Him 
that  sat  upon  the  throne.  '  And  when  he  had 
taken  the  book,  the  four  living  creatures  and  the 
four  and  twenty  elders  fell  down  before  the  Lamb, 
having  every  one  of  them  harps  and  golden  vials 
full  of  odours  ' — -incense — '  which  are,'  or  which 
symbolize,  '  the  prayers  of  saints.     And  they  sung 


214  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

a  new  song,  saying,  Thou  art  worthy  to  take  the 
book,  and  to  open  the  seals  thereof :  for  thou  wast 
slain,  and  hast  redeemed  us  to  God  by  Thy  blood 
out  of  every  kindred,  and  tongue,  and  people,  and 
nation ;  and  hast  made  us  unto  our  God  kings  and 
priests :  and  we  shall  reign  on  the  earth.' 

From  the  very  purport  of  this  song,  it  could  be 
sung  only  by  the  redeemed  in  heaven.  Angels  could 
not  sing,  '  Who  hath  loved  us  and  washed  us  from 
our  sins  in  His  own  blood.'  Accordingly,  the  great 
choir  of  angels  stand  back  in  silence,  while  this  part 
of  the  heavenly  service  is  performed.  But  then  a 
chorus  was  added, — one  of  the  grandest  that  was 
ever  sung  on  earth  or  in  heaven,  in  which  all  the  celes- 
tials can  unite.  '  I  beheld,  and  I  heard  the  voice  of 
many  angels  round  about  the  throne,  and  the  living 
creatures,  and  the  elders :  and  the  number  of  them 
was  ten  thousand  times  ten  thousand,  and  thousands 
of  thousands,  sa^ang  with  a  loud  voice.  Worthy  is 
the  Lamb  that  was  slain  to  receive  power,  and 
riches,  and  wisdom,  and  strength,  and  honour,  and 
glory,  and  blessing.  And  every  creature  which  is 
in  heaven,  and  on  the  earth,  and  under  the  earth, 
and  such  as  are  in  the  sea,  and  all  that  are  in 
them,  heard  I  saying.  Blessing,  and  honour,  and 
glory,  and  power,  be  unto  Him  that  sitteth  upon 
the  throne,  and  unto  the  Lamb,  for  ever  and 
ever'  (Rev.  v.  11-13). 


SONGS  OF  THE  APOCALYPSE.  215 

There  is  not  a  passage  in  the  Bible  which 
gives  us  a  nobler,  grander,  conception  of  heaven 
than  this.  The  vast  multitude  in  heaven,  cherubim 
and  seraphim,  angels  and  glorified  saints,  ten  thou- 
sand times  ten  thousand,  and  thousands  of  thou- 
sands, all  uniting  in  one  sublime  chorus  :  '  Blessing, 
and  honour,  and  glory,  and  power,  be  unto  Him 
that  sitteth  on  the  throne,  and  unto  the  Lamb,  for 
ever  and  ever !' 

We  have  a  similar  Song  of  praise  upon  the 
sealing  of  the  servants  of  God  in  their  fore- 
heads. Here,  as  in  the  last  instance,  the  ran- 
somed ones  commence  the  strain,  and  are  followed, 
in  grand  chorus,  by  the  angels,  '  I  beheld,  and,  lo, 
a  great  multitude,  which  no  man  could  number, 
of  all  nations,  and  kindreds,  and  people,  and 
tongues,  stood  before  the  throne,  and  before  the 
Lamb,  clothed  with  white  robes,  and  palms  in  their 
hands ;  and  they  cried  with  a  loud  voice,  saying, 
Salvation  to  our  God  which  sitteth  upon  the  throne, 
and  unto  the  Lamb.  And  all  the  angels  stood 
round  about  the  throne,  and  about  the  elders  and 
the  four  living  creatures,  and  fell  before  the  throne 
on  their  faces,  and  worshipped  God,  saying.  Amen : 
Blessing,  and  glory,  and  wisdom,  and  thanksgiving, 
and  honour,  and  power,  and  might,  be  unto  our 
God  for  ever.  Amen'  (Rev.  vii.  9-12). 

The  next  Song  in  heaven  is  sung  by  the  elders 


216  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

alone,  on  the  sounding  of  the  seventh  trumpet, 
when  the  inspiring  annunciation  was  made  :  '  The 
kingdoms  of  this  workl  have  become  the  kingdoms 
of  our  Lord  and  of  His  Christ,  and  He  shall  reign 
for  ever  and  ever.  And  the  four  and  twenty 
elders,  which  sat  before  God  on  their  seats,  fell 
upon  their  faces  and  worshipped  God,  saying. 
We  give  thee  thanks,  0  Lord  God  Almighty,  which 
art,  and  wast,  and  art  to  come ;  because  thou 
hast  taken  to  thee  thy  gi*eat  power,  and  hast 
reigned.  And  the  nations  were  angry,  and  thy 
wrath  is  come,  and  the  time  of  the  dead,  that  they 
should  be  judged,  and  that  thou  shouldst  give 
reward  unto  thy  servants  the  prophets,  and  to  the 
saints,  and  them  that  fear  Thy  name,  small  and 
gi*eat ;  and  shouldst  destroy  them  which  destroy 
the  earth'  (Rev.  xi.  15,  16). 

This  is,  in  the  first  place,  a  song  of  thanks- 
giving to  God  for  His  righteous  government  over 
the  world,  and  care  of  His  people.  It  also  cele- 
brates God's  glorious  justice,  in  giving  reward  unto 
His  servants,  and  destroying  them  that  had  de- 
stroyed the  earth. 

We  have  next  a  triumphal  Song,  sung,  appar- 
ently, by  the  entire  host  of  heaven,  on  the  victoiy 
of  Michael  over  the  dragon.  '  Now  is  come  salva- 
tion, and  strength,  and  the  kingdom  of  our  God, 
and  the  power  of  his  Christ ;  for  the  accuser  of  our 


SONGS  OF  THE  APOCALYPSE.  217 

brethren  is  cast  down,  which  accused  them  before 
GUI'  God  day  and  night.  And  they  overcame  him 
by  the  blood  of  the  Lamb,  and  by  the  word  of  their 
testimony  ;  and  they  loved  not  their  lives  unto  the 
death.  Therefore  rejoice,  ye  heavens,  and  ye  that 
dwell  in  them.  Woe  to  the  inhabiters  of  the 
earth,  and  of  the  sea !  for  the  devil  is  come  down 
unto  you,  having  great  wrath,  because  he  knoweth 
that  he  hath  but  a  short  time '  (Rev.  xii.  10—12). 

Satan  is  here  spoken  of  as  the  accuser  of  God's 
people — accusing  them  of  falls,  weaknesses,  incon- 
sistencies, imperfections.  And  how"  have  they  an- 
swered these  charges,  and  refuted  their  merciless 
adversary  ?  Not  by  denying  them,  or  excusing 
them,  or  by  off-setting  against  them  their  own 
good  deeds ;  no,  but  '  by  the  blood  of  the  Lamb.' 
There  is  no  other  way  in  which  Satan's  accusation 
can  ever  be  met  and  vanquished. 

The  next  Song  of  which  we  hear  in  heaven  is 
that  of  the  144,000,  who  have  their  Father's  name 
written  on  their  foreheads.  It  is  sung  by  them, 
and  by  them  only.  *  I  heard  a  voice  from  heaven, 
as  the  voice  of  many  waters,  and  as  the  voice  of  a 
great  thunder :  and  I  heard  the  voice  of  harpers 
harping  with  their  harps  :  and  they  sung  as  it 
were  a  new  song  before  the  throne,  and  before  the 
four  living  creatures,  and  the  elders ;  and  no  man 
could  learn  that  song  but  the  hundred  and  forty 

2E 


218  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAIJSED: 

and  four  thousand,  which  were  redeemed  from  the 
earth '  (Rev.  xiv.  2,  3). 

The  purport  of  this  song  is  not  given.  It 
is  called  a  new  song,  and  was  probably  similar  to 
the  new  song  of  redeeming  mercy,  of  which  we 
hear  in  chapter  v. 

After  this  we  have  the  Song  of  those  who 
had  gotten  the  victory  over  the  beast,  and  over 
his  image.  *  They  sing  the  song  of  Moses  the 
servant  of  God,  and  the  song  of  the  Lamb,  say- 
ing, Great  and  marvellous  are  Thy  works.  Lord 
God  Almighty ;  just  and  true  are  Thy  ways,  thou 
King  of  saints.  Who  shall  not  fear  Thee,  0  Lord, 
and  glorify  Thy  name  ?  for  Thou  only  art  holy  :  for 
all  nations  shall  come  and  worship  before  Thee ; 
for  Thy  judgments  are  made  manifest '  (Rev.  xv. 
3,4).    ' 

This  seems  to  have  been  sung  by  the  ransomed 
ones  exclusively.  They  are  said  to  have  sung  the 
song  of  Moses  and  the  Lamb, — a  song  of  deliver- 
ance, like  that  of  Moses  on  the  shore  of  the  Red 
Sea, — of  deliverance,  too,  by  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb.  This  song  refers  to  the  righteous  judg- 
ments of  God  upon  His  enemies,  and  to  the  result 
of  His  judgments  in  promoting  His  fear.  '  Who 
shall  not  fear  Thee,  0  Lord,  now  that  Thy  righteous 
judgments  are  made  manifest?' 

We  have  but  another  of  the  Songs  of  Heaven 


SONGS  OF  THE  APOCALYPSE.  219 

given  us  in  the  Revelation,  and  that  is  one  of  great 
interest,  —  on  the  fall  and  ruin  of  the  mystical 
Babylon.  *  After  these  things,  I  heard  a  great 
voice  of  much  people  in  heaven,  saying.  Alleluia ; 
Salvation,  and  glory,  and  honour,  and  power,  unto 
the  Lord  our  God :  for  true  and  righteous  are  His 
judgments  ;  for  He  hath  judged  the  great  whore, 
which  did  corrupt  the  earth  with  her  fornication, 
and  hath  avenged  the  blood  of  His  servants  at  her 
hand.  And  again  they  said.  Alleluia.  And  her 
smoke  rose  up  for  ever  and  ever '  (Rev.  xix.  1—3). 

In  this  song,  as  in  others,  the  retributive  justice 
of  God  is  celebrated.  Heavenly  beings  praise  God 
in  view  of  the  smoke  of  the  lost,  not  from  motives 
of  malice  and  revenge,  but  from  a  solemn  regard 
for  the  honour  of  God,  the  claims  of  His  justice, 
and  the  highest  good  of  the  universe ;  just  as  we 
rejoice  when  the  murderer  is  caught,  confined,  and 
brought  to  suffer  the  reward  of  his  deeds.  We 
have  no  malice  against  the  poor  convict.  We  pity 
him,  and  pray  for  him.  But  we  rejoice  that  the 
law  he  has  broken  is  honoured,  that  justice  is  vindi- 
cated, and  that  the  coQimunity  is  safe. 

Judging  from  the  Songs  we  have  examined,  hea- 
venly beings  think  more  of  the  justice  of  God,  than 
do  even  good  people  in  the  present  world.  They 
praise  it  more  earnestly,  and  in  tender  strains. 
They  speak  one  to  another  of  the  bottomless  pit, 


220  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

and  the  lake  of  fire,  without  any  fear  of  disturLing 
weak  sensibilities,  or  giving  offence. 

There  is  another  Song  in  immediate  connection 
with  this — if  it  be  another — in  a  different  strain : 
*  A  voice  came  out  of  the  throne,' — undoubtedly, 
from  the  Messiah — '  saying.  Praise  our  God,  all  ye 
His  servants,  and  ye  that  fear  Him,  both  small  and 
great.  And  I  heard  as  it  were  the  voice  of  a  great 
multitude,  and  as  the  voice  of  many  waters,  and  as 
the  voice  of  mighty  thundeiings,  saying,  Alleluia: 
for  the  Lord  God  omnipotent  reigneth.  Let  us  be 
glad  and  rejoice,  and  give  honour  to  Him  :  for  the 
marriage  of  the  Lamb  is  come,  and  his  wife  hath 
made  herself  ready.  And  to  her  was  granted  that 
she  should  be  arrayed  in  fine  linen,  clean  and  white  : 
for  the  fine  linen  is  the  righteousness  of  saints' 
(Rev.  xix.  5—8). 

The  last  conflict  is  now  nearly  over;  the  mil- 
lennial marriage  of  the  Lamb  is  approacing ;  the 
bride,  the  Church,  hath  received  her  robe  of  right- 
eousness, clean  and  white;  she  hath  made  herself 
ready ;  and  this  is  sufficient  to  call  forth  exultant 
praises  from  the  hosts  of  heaven. 

From  the  notices  we  have  taken  of  the  Songs  of 
Heaven,  we  learn  that  praise  is  perhaps  the  noblest 
of  all  employments.  It  is  emphatically  the  employ- 
ment of  heaven.  "We  hear  little  or  nothing  of 
prayers  in  heaven,  but  the  whole  atmosphere  is  full 


SONGS  OF  THE  APOCALYPSE.  221 

of  praise.  There  are  in  that  world  not  only  stated 
ascriptions,  like  those  of  the  cherubim  in  Rev.  iv.  8, 
but  frequent  outbursts  of  occasional  worship,  in  view 
of  great  deliverances  and  triumphs.  Such  are  most 
of  the  songs  which  we  find  recorded,  and  on  which 
we  have  had  occasion  to  remark. 

And  in  these  there  is  an  important  lesson  for  us. 
We,  too,  have  our  deliverances,  as  well  as  trials ; 
and  they  should  all  of  them  be  swift  occasions  of 
thanksgiving  and  praise.  Especially  should  we  be 
exultant  in  the  prosperity  of  Zion.  This  is  that 
which  calls  forth  the  loudest  praises  of  heaven ; 
and  in  these  praises  all  those  on  the  earth  who 
have  the  spirit  of  heaven  will  most  cordially  unite. 
They  will  join  in  these  blessed  employments  here, 
as  they  hope  to  partake  of  them,  with  joy  unspeak- 
able and  full  of  glory,  in  that  blessed  world  for  ever. 


222  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 


CHAPTER  XXL 

THE  LESSONS  OF  THE  APOCALYPSE. 

IT  would  be  unpardonable  to  close  this  review 
of  the  Apocalypse  without  adverting  to  some 
of  the  important  lessons  which  the  book  suggests. 

1.  A  thought  which  strikes  us  upon  the  first 
opening  of  the  book,  and  which  follows  us  through 
all  its  contents,  is,  the  deep  concern  ichich  heavenhj 
beings  feel  in  all  that  pertains  to  the  present  world. 
They  know  what  is  doing  here,  and  what  is  about 
to  be  done,  and  their  active  concern  in  it  is  unceas- 
ing. Angels  pour  out  the  vials  of  God's  wrath  upon 
the  wicked,  and  are  the  unwearied  ministers  of 
mercy  to  His  people.  While  they  adore  the  justice 
of  God  in  His  terrible  inflictions,  not  a  victory  is 
gained  over  the  dragon  or  the  beast,  but  it  is  cele- 
brated in  their  triumphal  songs.  In  the  study  of 
this  wonderful  book,  we  seem  to  be  almost  in 
heaven, — to  be  mingling  in  the  society  of  heavenly 
beings,  catching  their  voices,  and  partaking  of  their 
joys. 


LESSONS  OF  THE  APOCALYPSE.  22S 

The  secret  of  that  interest  which  heavenly  beings 
feel  for  us  on  the  earth  lies,  obviously,  in  redemption. 
It  was  here  that  the  great  Son  of  God  came  down, 
and  made  an  atonement  for  sin.  It  is  here  that  the 
work  of  redemption  is  going  forward,  and  will  go 
forward,  till  the  last  stone  of  the  heavenly  temple 
is  in  its  plaee.  The  Lamb  is  the  great  object  of 
attraction  in  heaven.  Kedemption  is  God's  greatest 
work — that  which  best  reveals  His  character,  and 
shows  forth  His  praise.  His  brightest  glory  shines 
in  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ.  And  since  earth  is  the 
theatre  of  redemption — the  place  of  Christ's  greatest, 
mightiest  achievements,  no  wonder  that  heavenly 
beings  are  interested  in  what  is  transpiring  here. 
No  wonder  the  seraphim  sing  above :  '  Holy,  holy, 
holy  is  the  Lord  God  of  hosts !  The  whole  earth  is 
full  of  His  glory.' 

2.  In  the  Apocalypse  we  behold,  perhaps  more 
clearly  than  anywhere  else,  ^  both  the  goodness-  and 
the  severity  of  GodJ  This  goodness,  not  only  to 
the  ransomed  ones  who  surround  His  throne  and 
share  His  glory,  but  even  to  those  who  are  ulti- 
mately cast  away  from  His  presence. 

Take,  for  example,  Imperial  Rome  —  that 
beast  which  Daniel  saw, — how  long  did  God's 
patience  endure  with  this  monster,  while  he  was 
devouring  and  breaking  in  pieces,  and  stamping  the 
residue  with  his  feet  ?     It  was  this  Roman  beast 


224  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

which  crucified  the  Lord,  and  which  tortured  and 
destroyed  His  people  with  every  form  of  misery  and 
death,  for  the  next  three  hundred  years.  Yet  the 
goodness  of  God  was  not  to  be  insulted  for  ever. 
Rome's  retribution  came  at  length ;  and  it  was  a 
frightful  one.  Read  the  opening  seals,  and  the  first 
six  trumpets,  and  behold  in  them  the  severity  of 
God  towards  this  old  and  hardened  ofi*ender.  There 
is  *  hail  and  fixe,  mingled  \vith  blood,'  cast  upon  the 
Roman  earth ;  there  is  '  a  great  mountain  burnmg 
with  fire '  dashed  into  the  Roman  sea ;  there  is  the 
plague  of  the  locusts  let  loose  from  the  bottomless 
pit,  to  torment  the  wicked  of  the  earth,  till  '  men 
shall  seek  death  and  not  find  it,  and  desire  to  die, 
but  death  shall  flee  from  them.'  There  are  the 
*two  hundred  thousand  thousand'  Turkish  horse- 
men, with  their  breast-plates  of  iron,  with  the  heads 
of  lions,  and  fire  and  brimstone  issuing  from  their 
mouths,  before  whom  the  last  remains  of  tlie  old 
Roman  empire  fall  to  rise  no  more. 

And  the  same  example  of  goodness  and  severity 
is  exhibited  in  God's  treatment  of  Papal  Rome. 
She  is  permitted  to  persecute  the  mystical  woman 
and  her  seed,  and  slaughter  the  faithful  witnesses, 
and  blaspheme  the  name  of  God  and  His  tabernacle, 
and  make  herself  drunk  with  the  blood  of  saints  and 
martyrs,  for  the  long  period  of  twelve  hundred  and 
sixty  years,  until  the  very  souls  under  the  heavenly 


LESSONS  OF  THE  APOCALYPSE.  225 

altar  begin  to  cry  out,  '  How  long,  0  Lord,  holy  and 
true,  dost  tliou  not  judge  and  avenge  our  blood  on 
tliem  that  dwell  on  the  earth?'  and  yet  God's 
patience  waits,  and  His  wrath  delays.  But  it  does 
not  wait  always.  A  final  conflict  is  provoked,  the 
sword  of  vengeance  falls,  and  then  the  severity  of 
God  is  manifest.  Great  Babylon  falls  with  a  crash 
that  astonishes  the  nations ;  a  lake  of  blood  issues 
from  the  wine-press  of  God's  wrath,  by  the  space  of 
one  thousand  six  hundred  furlongs.  All  the  fowls 
of  heaven  are  summoned  together  unto  the  supper 
of  the  great  God,  that  they  '  may  eat  the  flesh  of 
kings,  and  the  flesh  of  captains,  and  the  flesh  of 
mighty  men,  and  the  flesh  of  horses,  and  of  them 
that  sit  on  them,  and  the  flesh  of  all  that  follow 
them,  both  free  and  bond,  both  small  and  great.' 
Such  is  the  exhibition  here  made  of  God's  righteous 
severity;  and  all  this  in  the  present  life.  What 
then  must  the  impression  be,  as  we  follow  the  beast, 
and  the  false  prophet,  and  all  those  who  bear  their 
mark,  or  worship  their  image,  into  the  lake  of  fire, 
and  see  the  smoke  of  their  torment  ascending  up  for 
ever  and  ever? 

3.  While  we  hesg:  the  denunciations  of  the  Apo- 
calypse upon  Papal  Rome  as  an  organization,  and 
unite  with  the  hosts  of  heaven  in  their  approval, 
we  should  feel  none  hid  the  tenderest  comjmssion  to- 
wards the  deluded  devotees  of  this  corrupt  Church,  and 

2  F 


226  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

should  seek,  by  every  proper  metliod,  their  deliverance 
and  salvation. 

Thus  God  feels  towards  tliem.  This  is  evident 
from  His  long  suffering,  His  patient  forbearance 
with  them.  It  is  further  evident  in  His  faithful 
warnings  and  admonitions :  '  If  any  man  worship 
the  beast  and  his  image,  and  receive  his  mark 
in  his  forehead,  and  in  his  hand,  the  same  shall 
drink  of  the  wine  of  the  wrath  of  God,  which  is 
poured  out  without  mixture  into  the  cup  of  His 
indignation.'  *  Come  out  of  her,  my  people,  that 
ye  be  not  partakers  of  her  sins,  and  receive  not 
of  her  plagues.'  The  distinction  here  indicated 
between  a  system,  an  organization,  and  its  indivi- 
dual abettors,  is  a  very  important  one.  We  may 
abhor  a  system,  while  we  pity  and  pray  for  those 
who  are  involved  in  it  and  seduced  by  it.  We 
may  denounce  the  Romish  Church  as  a  ruinous  and 
blasphemous  usurpation,  and  yet  do  all  in  our  power 
to  enlighten  its  blinded  votaries,  and  rescue  them 
from  its  corruptions  and  its  doom. 

4.  We  learn  from  the  Apocalypse,  that  tchatso- 
ever  sliall  oppose  itself  to  God  and  His  Church  must 
idtimately  fall.  So  says  the  puophet  Isaiah :  '  The 
nation  and  kingdom  that  will  not  serve  Thee  shall 
perish ;  yea,  those  naticns  shall  be  utterly  wasted ' 
(Isa.  Ix.  11). 

We  learn  the  same  lesson  from  what  God  has 


LESSONS  OF  THE  APOCALYPSE.  227 

done  in  other  ages.  Where  now  are  the  kingdoms 
of  Assyria  and  Egypt, — the  oldest  of  which  we 
have  any  knowledge?  Where  is  great  Nineveh, 
and  the  still  greater  Babylon,  which  once  frowned 
defiance  on  all  who  approached  them,  and  seemed 
as  though  they  must  stand  for  ever.  Where  is  the 
Medo-Persian  ram  which  David  saw,  pushing  west- 
ward and  northward  and  southward,  so  that  no  beast 
could  stand  before  him,  neither  could  any  deliver  out 
of  his  hand  ?  And  where  is  that  Grecian  he-goat, 
which  came  so  rapidly  from  the  west,  that  he  seemed 
scarcely  to  touch  the  ground, — which  smote  the 
ram,  and  brake  his  two  horns,  and  trampled  his 
empire  in  the  dust?  And  where  is  that  fourth 
beast  which  Daniel  saw,  dreadful,  and  terrible,  and 
strong  exceedingly,  which  devoured  and  brake  in 
pieces  with  its  iron  teeth,  and  stamped  the  residue 
with  its  feet  ?  These  mighty  empires  have  long 
since  departed ;  their  cities  are  in  ruins  ;  their  names 
and  their  history  are  all  that  remain  to  us. 

And  why  have  they  passed  away  ?  Why  have 
they  been  so  utterly  and  miserably  destroyed? 
With  the  Bible  in  our  hands,  we  cannot  hesitate 
for  an  answer.  They  set  themselves  in  opposition 
to  the  kingdom  of  Christ,  and  they  could  not  pros- 
per. They  set  themselves  in  the  way  of  the  stone 
cut  out  of  the  mountain  without  hands,  and  it  rolled 
over  them,  and  ground  them  to  powder. 


228  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

And  so  shall  it  be  with  every  other  kingdom 
which  presumes  to  follow  then*  example.  We  have 
in  the  Apocalypse  visions  of  the  future,  which  are 
as  instructive  on  this  point  as  events  already  past. 
We  have  here  brought  before  us  the  last  fearful  ene- 
mies of  God  and  His  Church, — the  beast,  and  the 
false  prophet,  and  the  mystical  Babylon,  drunk  with 
the  blood  of  martyrs  and  saints.  And  what  is  to 
become  of  them  ?  What  is  their  end  ?  The  beast 
and  the  false  prophet  are  taken,  and  *  cast  alive  into 
the  lake  of  fire.'  A  mighty  angel  takes  up  a  stone, 
like  a  gi-eat  millstone,  and  casts  it  into  the  sea,  say- 
ing, *  Thus  with  violence  shall  that  great  city  Baby- 
lon be  thrown  down,  and  shall  be  found  no  more 
at  all.' 

Let  the  nations  of  the  earth  learn  a  lesson  from 
these  predictions  and  examples.  As  true  as  that 
there  is  a  God  in  heaven.  He  will  take  care  of  His 
people  ;  He  will  watch  over  His  Church ;  and  what- 
ever opposes  itself  to  the  onward  progress  of  this 
Church  and  kingdom  must  inevitably  fall. 

5.  A  correct  intei'pretation  of  the  Apocalypse 
is  of  great  importance,  since  it  awakens  hope^  and 
excites  to  effort  for  the  advancement  of  Chrises  kingdom. 

Interpretations  have,  in  some  instances,  been 
given,  which  are  of  an  opposite  tendency.  Some 
Adventists  tell  us  that  the  world  is  growing  worse 
and    worse  ;    that    nothing    can    be   done    to    re- 


LESSONS  OF  THE  APOCALYPSE.  229 

form  it  till  Christ  makes  His  appearance  per- 
sonally ;  and  that  we  may  as  well  desist  from  all 
further  efforts  to  advance  His  kingdom.  But  such 
is  not  the  tendency  of  the  views  which  we  have 
presented.  We  have  seen  that  there  is  to  be  a 
millennium, — a  long  period  of  rest  and  peace  to  the 
Church,  and  that  this  happy  day  is  near  at  hand. 
The  symbolic  seals  have  all  been  opened ;  the  first 
six  trumpets  have  been  sounded ;  the  first  five  vials 
have  been  poured  out;  the  twelve  hundred  and 
sixty  years  are  drawing  to  a  close  ;  and  every  thing 
on  the  prophetic  page  is  indicating  that  the  latter 
day  glory  of  the  Church  is  near. 

Meanwhile,  the  providence  of  God  is  teaching 
the  same  lesson.  The  Bible  is  translated  into  all 
languages,  and  circulated  in  all  lands  ;  the  Gospel 
is  preached  in  thousands  of  places  where,  until 
recently,  it  has  not  been  named ;  doors  long  shut 
against  the  truth  are  now  opened,  and  obstructions 
hitherto  insurmountable  are  taken  out  of  the  way. 
The  Pope  is  shorn  of  his  temporal  dominions,  and 
is  becoming  weak  as  any  other  man.  In  short, 
the  signs  of  the  times,  like  the  prophetic  symbols, 
are  unitedly  indicating  that  millennial  scenes  are 
near  at  hand. 

Now  all  these  things  should  operate — we  trust 
they  are  operating — as  incitements  to  increased 
exertion  in  this  holy  cause. 


230  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED: 

In  the  great  work  of  preparation  for  the  coming 
glory,  our  Divine  Master  has  assigned  to  each  Chris- 
tian his  place,  and  He  expects  that  every  one  will 
do  his  dutv.  There  must  be  no  indolence  or  deser- 
tion  in  so  good  a  cause ;  no  sleeping  on  the  watch ; 
no  faintness  of  heart  or  feebleness  of  hands ;  no 
parleying,  dallying,  or  compromising  with  the 
enemy.  Every  friend  of  Christ  must  now  be  a  fast 
friend,  a  liberal  friend,  a  devoted  and  unfailing 
friend.  Every  friend  of  Christ  must  possess,  in 
large  measure,  the  Spirit  of  Christ,  and  suffer  no 
contradiction  of  sinners  to  deprive  him  of  this. 
With  meekness  and  kindness,  with  humility  and 
gentleness,  weak  in  ourselves,  but  strong  in  the 
Lord,  we  must  go  forth  together  to  the  work 
assigned  us,  prepared  to  meet  dangers,  to  make 
sacrifices,  and  (if  it  must  be  so)  to  sufi*er  death, 
in  the  service  of  Him  who  laid  down  His  life 
for  us. 

The  scriptural  views  of  the  millennium  incul- 
cated by  such  men  as  Bellamy,  Hopkins,  Fuller,  and 
many  others,  near  the  beginning  of  the  present 
century,  contributed  not  a  little  to  arouse  the  Chris- 
tian world  to  effort  for  the  universal  spread  of  the 
Gospel,  and  led  on  to  that  new  state  of  things,  and 
to  those  bright  and  animating  prospects  which  we 
now  behold.  And  the  same  views,  we  trust,  will 
continue  to  operate,  and  with  increased  force,   until 


LESSONS  OF  THE  APOCALYPSE.  331 

the  whole  world  is  given  to  Christ ;  and  His  spiritual 
reign  shall  be  universal. 

6.  I  remark,  finally,  that  the  Apocalypse,  rightly 
interpreted,  is  calculated  to  afford  encouragement 
and  comfort  to  the  people  of  God,  even  in  the  darkest 
times. 

This  was  the  original  design  of  the  book  ; 
and  this  design  it  has  answered  all  along  through 
the  ages,  and  will  continue  to  answer,  till  the  end 
comes.  In  the  early  days  of  Pagan  persecution,  and 
in  the  later  Papal  persecutions,  we  can  hardly  con- 
ceive how  much  consolation  the  poor  distressed 
Christians  have  taken  in  reading  and  pondering  this 
blessed  book.  In  their  lonely  prisons,  in  their 
secluded  haunts,  in  the  dungeons  of  the  Inquisition 
and  the  Bastile,  in  dens  and  caves  of  the  earth,  with 
this  book  in  their  hands  or  in  their  memories,  they 
could  see  light  ahead.  They  could  see  their  cove- 
nant God  and  Redeemer  '  riding  on  the  whirlwind 
and  directing  the  storm,'  causing  the  wrath  of  man 
to  praise  Him ;  over-ruling  all  things  for  the  good  of 
His  people,  and  sure  to  end  the  fearful  conflict  in 
glorious  victory  and  abiding  peace. 

And  Christians,  under  all  circumstances,  are  en- 
titled to  partake  of  the  same  consolations.  This 
fountain  of  love  is  ever  open,  and  its  resources 
are  exhaustless.  Draw  near,  then,  afiiicted  believer 
— whether  in  sickness  or  bereavements,  in  worldly 


332  THE  APOCALYPSE  EXPLAINED. 

disappointments  or  spiritual  wants — come  and  draw 
living  water  from  these  wells  of  salvation.  Come 
and  see  the  glorious  termination  of  all  your  con- 
flicts, and  the  conflicts  of  God's  people  upon  earth, 
and  unite  your  voices  with  those  in  heaven,  say- 
ing, A  lleluia,  for  the  Lord  God  omnipotent  reigneth. 


APPENDIX.  233 


APPENDIX. 


THE  description  of  Ezekiel's  City  and  Temple  is 
contained  in  the  last  eight  chapters  of  his 
prophecy.  This  portion  of  the  inspired  word,  it  is 
presumed,  is  very  little  read,  and  that  because  it 
cannot  be  understood.  Christians  are  in  doubt  re- 
specting it ;  they  know  not  what  to  make  of  it,  and 
so  pass  it  by. 

The  description  before  us  is  prefaced  by  the 
resurrection  in  the  valley  of  dry  bones,  denoting 
the  conversion  of  Israel  in  the  latter  days,  and 
their  seeming  restoration  to  their  own  land  (Ezek. 
xxxvii.).  This  is  followed  by  a  tremendous  assault 
upon  them  by  Gog  and  Magog,  and  other  enemies, 
in  which  converted  Israel,  or,  in  other  words,  the 
Church  of  God,  is  delivered. 

This  is  very  like  the  great  conflict  immediately 

preceding   the   millennium,    of  which  we   hear  so 

much   in   the   Kevelation.      Indeed,    some   of   the 

phraseology  is   strikingly   similar  to    that   in  the 

Revelation,   and  may  have  suggested  to  John   a 

portion  of  his  imagery.     For  example,  in  the  nine- 

2  G 


234  APPENDIX. 

teentli  chapter  of  the  Revelation,  all  the  fowls  of 
heaven  are  summoned  together  unto  the  supper 
of  the  great  God,  that  they  'may  eat  the  flesh 
of  kings,  and  the  flesh  of  captains,  and  the  flesh 
of  mighty  men,  and  the  flesh  of  horses,  and  of 
them  that  sit  on  them,  and  the  flesh  of  all  men, 
both  free  and  bond,  both  small  and  great'  (Rev. 
xix.  18).  So  also  in  Ezekiel:  'Thus  saitli  the 
Lord  God ;  Speak  unto  every  feathered  fowl,  and 
to  every  beast  of  the  field.  Assemble  yourselves, 
and  come ;  gather  yourselves  on  every  side  to  my 
sacrifice  that  I  do  sacrifice  for  you,  even  a  great 
sacrifice  upon  the  mountains  of  Israel,  that  ye  may 
eat  flesh,  and  drink  blood.  Ye  shall  eat  the  flesh 
of  the  mighty,  and  drink  the  blood  of  the  princes 
of  the  earth,  of  rams,  of  lambs,  and  of  goats,  of 
bullocks,  all  of  them  fatlings  of  Bashan.  And  ye 
shall  eat  fat  till  ye  be  full,  and  drink  blood  till  ye  be 
drunken,  of  my  sacrifice  which  I  have  sacrificed  for 
you.  Thus  ye  shall  be  filled  at  my  table  with  horses 
and  chariots,  with  mighty  men,  and  with  all  men  of 
war,  saith  the  Lord  God'  (Ezek.  xxxix.  17—20). 

Immediately  following   this  is   Ezekiel's  vision 
of  the  temple  to  be  built,  running  out  into  a  minute 
>  particularity,  and  extending  through  the  three  fol- 
lowing chapters. 

The  temple  being  prepared,  the  God  of  Israel 
returns  to  take  up  His  abode  in  it.     '  The  glory  of 


APPENDIX.  235 

the  Lord  came  into  the  house  by  the  way  of  the 
gate  whose  prospect  is  toward  the  east.  So  the 
spirit  took  me  up,  and  brought  me  into  the  inner 
court ;  and,  behold,  the  glory  of  the  Lord  filled  the 
house '  (Ezek.  xliii.  4,  5). 

Next  the  altar  is  measured,  and  its  ordinances 
of  worship  are  described.  The  services  of  the 
priests  and  Levites  also  are  appointed  (Ezek.  xliv.). 

The  Land  of  Promise,  as  described  by  Ezekiel, 
is  very  different  from  that  in  which  Israel  had  before 
dwelt.  It  is  in  shape  a  quadrangle  or  parallelo- 
gram, about  a  hundred  miles  in  length  from  north 
to  south,  and  fifty  in  breadth  from  east  to  west. 
Nearly  half  of  the  central  portion  of  it,  where 
stand  the  city  and  the  temple,  is  reserved  for  the 
priests  and  Levites,  and  for  other  public  uses. 
The  remaining  portions  of  it,  on  the  northern  and 
southern  extremities,  are  set  apart,  severally,  for 
the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel,  each  tribe  having  a 
narrow  strip  running  entirely  across  the  territory 
from  east  to  west. 

From  the  foundation  of  the  temple,  on  the  east 
side,  Ezekiel  saw  water  issuing  forth  in  small 
quantity.  But  as  he  traced  it,  the  stream  con- 
stantly increased,  until  it  became  a  river  which  he 
could  not  cross.  It  ran  along  in  a  south-easterly 
direction — its  banks  being  crowned  with  fruitful 
trees — until  it  emptied  its  waters  into  the  Dead 


236  APPENDIX. 

Sea,  which  (strange  to  tell)  was  at  once  cleansed 
from  its  nauseous,  deadly  qualities,  and  became 
fruitful  in  all  kinds  of  fish.  The  imagery  here,  as 
in  the  city  which  John  describes  in  the  last  two 
chapters  of  the  Revelation,  is  borrowed  from  the 
terrestrial  paradise — the  garden  of  Eden.  In  each 
of  the  three  there  is  a  river,  the  banks  of  which  are 
crowned  ^vith  life-giving,  health-restoring,  trees. 
The  city  of  Ezekiel  is  also,  in  some  respects,  like 
that  of  John.  It  lay  four  square,  having  three 
gates  on  each  side — twelve  in  all — which  bore  the 
names  of  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel;  it  was  a  splen- 
did city,  and  it  had  a  glorious  name — Jehovah 
Shammah — the  Lord  is  there. 

Without  going  further  into  a  description  of  tho 
renovated  Palestine,  the  city  and  temple  of  Ezekiel, 
let  us  pause  and  inquire,  What  do  these  things 
mean  ?     What  is  their  import  and  interpretation  ? 

One  thing  is  certain,  these  predictions  of  Ezekiel 
have  not  yet  been  fulfilled.  The  twelve  tribes  of 
Israel  have  not  been  converted  and  restored  to 
their  own  land.  This  land  has  not  been  divided  in 
the  manner  set  forth  by  the  prophet ;  nor  has  such 
a  city  and  temple  as  he  describes  been  built.  Jeru- 
salem and  the  temple  were  rebuilt  after  the  return 
of  a  portion  of  the  Jews  from  Babylon,  but  not  in 
the  style  foretold  by  Ezekiel,  nor  anything  ap- 
proaching it. 


APPENDIX.  237 

Another  question  arises :  Will  these  predictions 
ever  have  a  literal  fulfilment?  Was  such  the  in- 
tention of  the  Spirit  who  indited  them  ?  The  de- 
scriptions throughout  look  like  a  literal  fulfilment. 
They  are  so  minute  and  particular,  as  almost  to 
force  upon  one  the  idea  of  such  a  fulfilment.  But 
will  it  ever  be  realised?  It  must  be  borne  in  mind, 
that  if  we  insist  upon  a  literal  fulfilment,  we  must 
carry  it  honestly  through.  If  any  part  of  the 
prediction  is  to  be  taken  literally,  all  must  be. 
The  question  returns  then :  Are  we  to  suppose  that 
this  prediction  of  Ezekiel  ever  will  be  literally 
fulfilled  ? 

I  think  not.  The  supposition  is  inadmissible,  if 
not  impossible.  It  can  never  be.  Who  believes  that 
the  Holy  Land,  now  somewhat  irregularly  shaped,  is 
ever  to  be  transformed  into  a  quadrangle  such  as 
has  been  described ;  and  that  the  twelve  tribes  of 
Israel — each  a  distinct  community — are  to  be  re- 
covered and  settled  there  ?  Or,  if  they  should  be, 
who  believes  that  they  would  be  willing  to  give 
up  nearly  half  of  their  small  territory  to  the  priests 
and  Levites,  and  other  officials,  reserving  to  them- 
selves only  twelve  narrow  strips,  running  across  the 
country  from  east  to  west  ?  Nor  is  this  the  worst 
of  it :  How  long  could  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel 
live  on  these  narrow  strips,  embracing  at  the 
farthest   not    more    than    three    thousand    square 


238  APPENDIX. 

miles — a  tenth  part  as  much  as  the  state  of  Mame  ? 
Who  can  beUeve  that  a  temple,  such  as  Ezekiel 
describes,  is  yet  to  be  built  in  Palestine,  and  that 
the  entire  Mosaic  ritual,  with  its  feasts  and  fasts, 
its  bloody  sacrifices  and  offerings,  is  to  be  estab- 
lished there,  and  that  too  for  converted  Christian 
men,  when  the  apostles  assure  us  that  Judaism,  as 
such,  is  dead,  and  that  the  ritual  of  Moses  has 
vanished  away  ?  Who  believes  that  a  stream  of 
water,  small  at  first,  but  miraculously  increased  as 
it  passes  along,  until  it  becomes  a  mighty  river,  is 
to  issue  from  the  foundations  of  this  new  temple, 
and  pour  its  waters  into  the  Dead  Sea,  removing  at 
once  the  nauseous  deadly  qualities  of  the  sea,  and 
filling  it  with  fish  and  other  living  creatures.  If 
Ezekiel's  vision  is  to  be  accepted  literally,  then  all 
these  things  are  to  come  to  pass ;  and  yet  who 
believes  them  ?     Who  can  believe  them  ? 

The  question  returns  then.  What  is  the  import 
of  Ezekiel's  vision,  and  of  the  chapters  on  which 
we  have  remarked?  How  are  they  to  be  under- 
stood? And  what  were  they  designed  to  teach? 
We  answer  :  They  are  to  be  understood,  not 
literally,  but,  like  the  Apocalypse,  symbolically; 
and  thus  interpreted,  they  are  fall  of  rich  and 
glorious  meaning.  Thus  the  resurrection  of  the 
dry  bones  is  a  symbol,  teaching  the  future  con- 
version of  the  Jews,  and  perhaps  of  the  Gentiles 


APPENDIX.  239 

also,  to  Christ.  The  assault  of  Gog  and  Magog 
portends  the  great  conflict  which  is  to  usher  in  the 
millennium.  The  city  with  its  surroundings,  and 
the  temple  with  its  services,  set  forth  the  glory  of 
the  millennial  Church,  and  the  purity  of  its  worship. 
The  stream  issuing  from  the  temple,  and  pouring 
into  the  Dead  Sea  to  heal  its  waters  and  fill  it  with 
life,  is  a  beautiful  symbol  of  the  healing  influences 
of  the  sanctuary  of  God.  If  this  world  of  death  is 
ever  to  be  recovered  to  Christ,  it  must  be  by  an 
influence  such  as  this.  Such,  as  it  seems  to  me,  are 
some  of  the  teachings  of  Ezekiel's  vision, — more 
rich  and  glorious  infinitely,  than  any  literal  inter- 
pretation can  be. 

And  if  it  be  inquired  further,  why  the  symbolical 
method  of  teaching  was  here  adopted — why,  if  the 
Divine  Spirit  wished  to  inculcate  lessons  such  as 
these.  He  did  not  do  it  in  plain,  literal,  didactic 
terms  ?  I  have  only  to  answer,  that  Ezekiel  was  a 
Jew  and  a  priest,  and  those  to  be  instructed  and 
comforted  by.  him  were  Jews.  All  their  ideas  of 
religion  were  associated  with  a  temple  service — with 
the  official  work  of  the  priests,  and  the  sacrifices 
and  offerings  of  the  temple.  Hence,  the  promise 
of  great  spiritual  blessings — a  great  and  future  re- 
vival of  religion — must  be  made  to  them  in  con- 
nection with  a  new  city  and  temple.  It  could  be 
made   intelligibly   in   no    other   way.      The   pious 


240  APPENDIX. 

in  Israel  were  encouraged  and  comforted  by  the 
vision  of  Ezekiel,  as  they  could  not  have  been  if 
the  prediction  had  been  given  in  more  Hteral 
terms. 

It  is  for  lis,  who  have  the  brighter  hght  and 
more  spiritual  teachings  of  the  Gospel,  to  look 
through  the  shadows  to  the  substance — to  study 
these  venerable  s}Tnbols,  and  gather  from  them  the 
lich  and  glonous  instructions  which  they  were  in- 
tended to  impart. 


fuHlVBRSIT?^ 


TQE  END. 


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EARTH'S    COMMENTARY, 

AN  EXPOSITOKY   AND    FRACTICAL    COMMENTAIIY 

ON  THE 

BOOKS    OF    SCRIPTURE, 

AERANGED  IN  CHHONOLOGICAL  OEDEE. 

Translated  from  the  German  work  edited  by  the  late  Dr  C.  G.  Bartk,  Cuh/r, 
Wiertt-mhrfj.     First  American  ^rom.  the  xecfmd  English  Edition.     Im- 
Ijerial  octavo.     V)W)  pp.      Cloth,  o  dols.;  sheep,  C  dols. 

SOLD     BY    SUBSCRIPTION. 


The  object  of  this  work  is  twofold:  first,  to  facilitate  the  study  of  the  Iluly 
Scriptures,  by  arranging  them  in  stricthj  chronological  order,  so  that  the  sacred 
narrative  may  form  one  continuous  and  connected  histoiy,  from  Genesis  to 
Eevelntion;  and,  secondly,  to  elucidate  the  Sacred  Text  by  expository  annotations, 
and  at  the  same  time  to  furnish  arguments  against  the  pernicious  effects  of 
modem  rationalism. 

The  spirit  of  the  work  is  that  of  implicit  faith  in  the  Divine  Inspiration  of  the 
Bible.  It  is  believed  the  book  will  commend  itself  at  once  to  the  notice  of  clergy- 
men and  others,  whose  duty  it  is  to  explain  and  apply  the  lessons  of  divine  truth ; 
and,  indeed,  that  it  wUI  prove  a  valuable  help  to  all  students  of  God's  Holy  Word. 


Published  by  Hoyt,  Fogg  and  Breed. 


From  Rev.  E.  B.  Webb,  D.D.,  Pastor,  Shawmut  Church,  Boston, 

The  chief  peculiarity  of  this  work  is  that  it  follows  the  veritable  order  of 
history, — the  grand  procession  of  recorded  events.  Provided  only  that  the  text 
is  not  tampered  with,  no  variation  or  arrangement  of  the  sacred  books  can  destroy 
their  divine  authority.  Whatever  their  order,  they  constitute  still  the  Word  of  God. 

But  could  they  be  arranged  just  as  they  came  into  existence, — book  following 
book,  and  psalm  following  the  event  that  called  it  forth,  and  prophecy  set  in  the 
course  of  the  events  with  which  it  was  connected, — we  should  have  the  most 
natural  arrangement  possible, — continuous  sacred  history  in  the  original  order. 

Just  this  is  attempted  in  this  Commentaiy.  The  arrangement  is  similar  to 
that  of  Townsend;  the  commentary  is  much  more.  The  arrangement  itself  is  a 
commentary,  just  as  the  arrangement  of  Webster's  speeches  in  connection  with 
the  questions  and  causes  and  events  which  produced  them  would  be  the  best 
commentary  upon  them. 

The  4'2d  Fsalm,  for  instance,  is  a  precious  piece  of  devotional  reading,  as  it 
stands  among  the  other  Psalms.  '  As  the  heart  panteth  after  the  water-brooks,' 
etc.  But  inserted  in  its  chronological  connections,  and  read  in  the  hght  of 
historical  events,  it  is  impressive  and  striking,  as  well  as  devotional. 

So  the  prophets,  instead  of  being  gathered  together  in  one  part  of  the  Bible  by 
themselves,  are  introduced  into  the  reigns,  and  among  the  events  where  they 
actually  appeared.  And  thus  history  and  prophecy  are  made  mutually  to  explain 
and  authenticate  each  other.  And  so  the  events  and  scenes  of  Scripture  are  made 
to  move  again  in  a  grand  panoramic  review  before  the  mind's  eye. 

To  a  multitude  of  persons  who  have  been  familiar  only  with  the  common 
version  of  King  James,  and  the  ordinary  commentaries  upon  it,  this  will  be  a 
most  welcome,  suggestive,  and  instructive  commentary.  Widely  known  in 
England,  I  shall  be  happy  to  see  it  known  in  America  also. 

From  Rev.  J.  J.  Carruthers,  D.D.,  Pastor  Second  Cong.  Church,  Portland. 

This  work — admirably  translated  from  the  German — is  the  result  of  mar- 
vellous industry  and  extensive  erudition,  applied  to  the  elucidation  of  the  Holy 
Scriptures.  Its  main  peculiarity  lies  in  the  arrangement  of  the  sacred  books. 
The  author  follows  the  recognised  chronological  order  of  their  respective  dates, 
the  book  of  Job,  for  example,  following  immediately  after  that  of  Genesis,  and 
the  Psalms  of  David  being  severally  allocated  to  that  portion  of  individual  and 
national  history  to  which  they  respectively  belong.  The  prophetic  portions  of 
the  Old  Testament  are,  in  like  manner,  interwoven  with  the  histories,  so  as  to 
indicate  the  precise  period  of  their  composition,  and  the  original  purpose  of  their 
divine  inspiration.  Pursuing  the  same  general  plan,  the  author  harmonizes  the 
four  Gospel  narrations,  and  interweaves  with  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  the  epistles 
successively  addressed  to  the  churches  of  the  saints.  The  whole  is  divided  into 
convenient  sections,  and  every  part  of  each  section  commented  on  so  clearly,  as 
to  convey  a  distinct  impression  of  its  meaning,  its  proper  application,  and  its 
practical  utility. 

It  is  a  work  of  prodigious  labour,  but  labour  obviously  expended  con  amove 
by  the  distinguished  author.  There  is  a  delightful  glow  of  devotional  power  per- 
vading his  explanatory  and  practical  remarks,  and  rendering  his  work  a  valuable 
companion  to  the  private  Christian  in  his  closet  as  well  as  to  the  professional 
scholar  in  his  study.  I  have  no  hesitation,  therefore,  in  commending  it  to  all  who 
can  afford  to  buy  it,  and  are  willing  to  procure,  at  a  comparatively  small  expense, 
an  effective  auxiliary  to  the  profitable  perusal  of  the  Word  of  God. 


Published  by  Hoyt,  Fogg  and  Breed. 


From  Rev.  Samuel  H.  Merrill,  Agent  American  Bible  Society,  Portland. 

This  Commentary,  first  introduced  to  the  English  public  a  few  years  since,  is, 
both  in  design  and  in  execution,  a  work  of  sterling  value.  Its  design  is  to  give  to 
those  who  have  not  the  advantage  of  an  acquaintance  with  the  original  languages, 
a  clear  and  comprehensive  knowledge  of  the  Word  of  God.  In  the  prosecution 
of  this  design,  the  results  of  profound  learning  are  given,  but  not  the  processes  by 
which  those  results  are  reached.  It  has  several  striking  peculiarities,  amongst 
which  is  this,  that  throughout,  in  the  doctrinal,  no  less  than  in  the  prophetical, 
devotional,  and  hisforiccU  books,  the  order  of  history  is  strictly  observed.  As  the 
book  of  Job  belongs  to  the  patriarchal  period,  it  is  here  introduced  immediately 
after  Genesis.  So  the  more  memorable  of  the  psalms  are  each  introduced  accord- 
ing to  the  time  of  its  composition,  and  in  connection  with  the  events  which 
called  it  forth.  This  arrangement  itself  deepens  the  interest  of  the  reader  in  the 
text,  and  greatly  helps  to  elucidate  its  meaning.  < 

Unlike  too  many  works  of  the  German  school  of  theology,  this  takes  for 
granted  the  full  inspiration  of  the  Bible,  and  its  single  object  is  to  bring  out  its 
true  meaning,  and  impress  it  upon  the  heart.    '  JIultum  in  Parvo"  is  its  motto. 

This  work,  uniting  the  excellences  of  Doddridge,  of  Campbell,  of  Townsend, 
and  of  others  whose  valuable  expositions  have  long  been  familiar  to  the  Christian 
public,  and  breathing  throughout  a  spirit  of  earnest  devotion,  meets  a  want  which 
has  long  been  felt.  As  a  help  to  a  clear  understanding  of  the  Divine  oracles,  if 
the  choice  were  between  this  and  all  others,  we  should  give  the  preference  to  this. 

Agents  for  Maine  for  the  Sale  of 

SONGS  FOR  THE  SANCTUARY, 

Which  is  uuiversally  pronounced  to  be  the 
BEST  CHTTRCH  HYMN  AND  TTINE  BOOK  IN  THE  MARKET. 


Terms  for  Introduction  : 

Hymns  and  Tunes,  8vo,  cloth,        .....  Dol.  1.60 

Hymns,  18mo,  .......         1.00 

Special  Editions  for  Congregational  and  Baptist  Societies. 

Messrs  II.,  F.  &  B.  also  publish  a  number  of 
STINDAT  SCHOOL  CONCEBT  EXERCISES,  CLASS  BOOKS, 

ALL  KINDS  OF 

School  Record  Cards,  Certificates,  Rank  Books,  Diplomas,  Blanks  and  Books /or 

Town  Officers'  use,  etc.,  etc. 

HOYT,    FOGG    AND    BREED, 

9  2    MIDDLE    STREET, 

PORTLAND. 


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